During the build up to the 2014 NFL season Mike McCarthy and the rest of the Green Bay Packers' staff will harp on the depth of the backfield. They will point to the versatility of James Starks and DuJuan Harris.
But let's not kid ourselves, this is Eddie Lacy's show.
"We haven't sat down and figured out 'X' number of carries for Eddie," offensive coordinator Tom Clements said this offseason, per ESPN.com. "We want to get him touches, trying to get him more involved in all aspects of the game, but Eddie was a workhorse for us last year. And then when James got in there last year, he ran very hard. That was a great one-two punch. Now you factor in DuJuan and the other guys, it's going to be interesting to see how that plays out."
As we discussed last week, the Packers want Lacy to be able to stay on the field on third downs so the pace doesn't slow due to subbing in a better pass-catching, blocking back.
Lacy played about 65 percent of the Packers' snaps last season, per Pro Football Focus. That percentage could go up if the second-year back can stay on the field on passing downs. While his 284 carries might not increase significantly, we expect to see an improvement on his 35 receptions in 2013.
The clear Offensive Rookie of the Year last season has power to grind up defensive backs if the Packers can get him in space in the passing game.
The latest "Around The League Podcast" bangs the table for Cordarrelle Patterson and predicts which stars will soon descend.
