Josh Jacobs Broke A Finger After Nine Snaps. The Timecard Rule Points To Kaleb Johnson.

Friends, in my Oct. 30 column, I made a call: "Josh Jacobs will get at least 18 carries against the Patriots." He got four. My call came up 14 short, which happens to be exactly how many carries Kaleb Johnson got. I was off by one running back.

That call has company. My Fannin call needed six catches, and Fannin caught two on two targets, one for a touchdown, in the Browns' 23-22 loss at New Orleans. My Taylor call needed 15 carries, and Taylor got 13 against the Cowboys. All three go on our calls page as misses.

My father raised me on Cleveland football, so a one-point loss and an 0-for-3 Sunday felt like a family reunion.

Nine Snaps And A Ring Finger

Jacobs broke the ring finger on his right hand while trying to stiff-arm a defender in the first quarter, Rob Demovsky reported for ESPN. JJ Zachariason counted nine snaps before the injury. The medical staff tried tape, then a cast, and Jacobs never returned. He finished with 4 carries for 5 yards.

Jacobs said it plainly, per ESPN: "I know it's broke, but I don't know the extent." Matt Schneidman added: "Jacobs caught his finger in a Patriots facemask. Popped it back in himself after it broke." I have fixed the same lawn mower eleven times and never once set a bone. I tip my cap.

"Hopefully we can do something to allow him to go out there," Packers coach Matt LaFleur said, per ESPN, and Schneidman reported the same hope. MarShawn Lloyd was already inactive with a knee injury. The Packers are 6-3, and the Vikings, 6-1 and playing Buffalo tonight, visit Lambeau on Sunday, Nov. 15.

Who Worked The Shift

Kaleb Johnson ran 14 times for 68 yards and scored his first career touchdown. His 34-yard run in the fourth quarter was the Packers' longest of the season, per Schneidman, beating his own 31-yarder in Tampa.

The Packers ran for 129 yards, ESPN reported, "breaking the 100-yard rushing mark for the first time in nine games this season."

ESPN also noted that Johnson has been a healthy scratch twice this season after fumbling early in the year. He called Sunday "a little thing of what I can do when I get comfortable with the system". I spent nearly a decade watching new hires get comfortable on a loading dock. The good ones looked like that.

Zachariason laid out the split after Jacobs left: "Kaleb Johnson played 26 snaps to Pierre Strong's 29. Johnson had 14 rushes to Strong's 8, and Johnson had 7 routes to Strong's 14." Johnson got the carries. Strong got the routes.

Zach Jacobson noted that Johnson and Jacobs have both carried the ball 36 times this season. "Johnson has 160 yards and is averaging 4.4 yards per carry, while Jacobs has 80 yards and is averaging 2.2 yards per carry."

Packers fans had a happy Sunday evening. After the 34-yard run, plenty of them declared Johnson better than Jacobs, and one ranked him above Barry Sanders, in jest. I understand the joy. Still, one good game in a 45-27 blowout is a small sample.

The Timecard Rule Has Fine Print

Neighbors, the timecard rule says "touches are the hours a back works, and the hours are what I pay for." I stand by it. Every warehouse manager also knows the fine print.

In my warehouse years, when a man got hurt on the dock, he went home and his shift stayed. Somebody else clocked in and got paid for the hours. Jacobs's timecard got punched after nine snaps. Until his hand can grip a football, the hours belong to whoever is healthy.

A timecard only counts when the man can clock in. The shift still runs, and somebody else works it.

Chief, I am out on the gravel. So here is my call, and it goes on the tracker to be graded after the game. Kaleb Johnson will lead the Packers in carries against the Vikings on Sunday.

Now the evidence against me. If Jacobs can grip the ball by Sunday, this call gets harder. Zain Dhanani framed the waiver question as "Kaleb Johnson or MarShawn Lloyd (if healthy)" and wrote, "Also think Lloyd gets the PPR so league format will matter". I concede both halves. Format matters, and so does Lloyd's knee.

What I Am Doing About It

1. I am adding Kaleb Johnson this week wherever he is available. He is the back I just put my name on.
2. In PPR leagues, I am keeping an eye on Strong's routes. Strong ran 14 to Johnson's 7, and PPR pays for catches.
3. I am not dropping or panic-selling Jacobs. ESPN reports he is unsure whether he can play Sunday, and a Monday sale gets a Monday price.
4. I am checking the Packers injury report and Lloyd's knee before Sunday's noon CT kickoff. Either one can change who works the shift.
5. I revisit after the Vikings game. That is when my call gets graded on the tracker, hit or miss.