Packers running back Josh Jacobs' initial court appearance gets moved up to Thursday

Green Bay Packers running back Josh Jacobs’ initial court appearance on two misdemeanor charges stemming from a May altercation with his girlfriend has been moved up two months and now will take place next week.

Jacobs’ hearing originally was scheduled for Nov. 17. The hearing now is set for Thursday, three days before the Packers open the season at Minnesota.

The NFL has placed Jacobs on the commissioner’s exempt list, which prevents the three-time Pro Bowl running back from playing or practicing but allows him to keep receiving a paycheck. The NFL made that move Sunday, three days after Brown County (Wisconsin) District Attorney David Lasee announced that Jacobs was being charged with battery and criminal damage to property.

Upon request and with the club’s permission, players on the commissioner’s exempt list may be allowed at the facility for meetings, individual workouts, therapy and rehabilitation and other nonfootball activities.

The NFL is investigating Jacobs’ situation and he could be suspended by the league. Any games he misses while on the exempt list would count toward his suspension, but he would have to repay the money he earned during that time.

Jacobs’ lawyers — David Z. Chesnoff, Richard A. Schonfeld and Clarence F. Duchac III — have noted that the move to the commissioner’s exempt list “is not a final determination.” They added that Jacobs “looks forward to his return to the team and the NFL.”

Jacobs was arrested May 26, three days after Hobart-Lawrence police officers came to his home to investigate a disturbance. Police said Jacobs’ girlfriend told them she had a lump on her head as a result of Jacobs’ actions.

According to police, the woman said she had been looking through Jacobs’ phone and saw he was talking to other women, and that she threw the phone in anger without breaking it. She told police that Jacobs had her phone and she told him he could look through it.

Police said the woman indicated she tried to retrieve her phone from Jacobs, but he grabbed her arm and began a struggle that lasted several minutes. They left the home in separate vehicles before eventually returning.

According to police, the woman was trying to exit a garage door when Jacobs grabbed her and threw her to the ground, causing her to hit her head. Police said Jacobs also took the phone from her while she was on the ground. The criminal complaint says surveillance footage from the camera system in the garage backed up the woman’s statement.

Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst said this week that the team hadn’t seen that video footage. He expressed hope that Jacobs would be available to play at some point this season.

“But we’re going to let this process play out, and we’ll be prepared either way,” Gutekunst said.

Jacobs is coming off a 2025 season in which he rushed for 929 yards and 13 touchdowns. The Packers don't have any other running backs who ran for more than 106 yards last year.

Green Bay acquired 2025 third-round pick Kaleb Johnson from the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday to join a running back room that also includes 2024 third-round pick MarShawn Lloyd and Chris Brooks. Green Bay has Pierre Strong Jr. on its practice squad.

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