The Green Bay Packers finished the game against the Los Angeles Chargers with only one healthy running back — AJ Dillon. Aaron Jones left early with what looked like a serious knee injury, and then Emanuel Wilson had a shoulder issue.

After the game, head coach Matt LaFleur said it's not a long-term problem for Jones, and Wilson affirmed he is "going to be alright". So the Packers will probably get their two runners back throughout the season, but there's still one big problem: the Packers face the Detroit Lions in four days.

They need more options, and it's a limited market at this point.

"That's a great question. We'll have a solution for it," LaFleur said when asked about potentially having only one healthy running back for now. "I trust Gutey and I know his staff is on it, and we'll have a solution for that. But it's another great challenge."

Besides the necessity of adding bodies, the Packers would presumably prefer players who already are familiar with the system — be it within their own building or with teams that run similar offensive schemes around the league.

Practice squad call up

The first obvious answer is rookie Ellis Merriweather, recently signed by the Packers to the practice squad. The Packers don't need to sign him to the 53-man roster, as he can be elevated for gameday on Thursday. It's not an ideal circumstance for the rookie, who's been with the Packers for 13 days — it'll be 17 days on Thanksgiving. But running back is a relatively easier position to pick up, and he would have a limited role anyway.

Former Packers

Another easy answer would be James Robinson, who spent around three weeks on the Packers practice squad earlier this season. He was released two weeks ago, but at least he has experience in the league and some knowledge of the system and the pieces. It's a tough situation because backups don't practice much on their own offense, doing more scout team looks, but Robinson also played under Matt LaFleur's brother, Mike, with the New York Jets last season. He’s a street free agent, and therefore could be signed to the PS and elevated for gameday.

Other good alternatives are players that spent time with the Packers this year and now are on other teams' practice squads. The most logical signing, and that might be their first option this week, is Patrick Taylor. He played four games for the Packers this season and was cut after the Las Vegas Raiders game. Now, he's with the Patriots PS, but Green Bay could sign him to the 53-man roster — the question is if he would want that, knowing that it's probably not a long-term opportunity.

Another player in a similar situation is Tyler Goodson, now on the Indianapolis Colts practice squad. He spent the entire 2022 season on the Packers PS and was with the team during this year's training camp. The last alternative of this type is Lew Nichols III, who was drafted by the Packers in this year's seventh round. He didn't make the 53-man roster and is now with the Philadelphia Eagles.

Options around the league

There are some other options that play in similar offensive systems. The best long-term ceiling would be rookie Xazavian Valladay, who's on the New York Jets practice squad — his offensive coordinator is Nathaniel Hackett, a former Packers OC under LaFleur. There are also more experienced options, like J. J. Taylor, on the Texans PS, and Jeremy McNichols, who's played for 10 NFL teams since 2017 and is on the 49ers PS.

Veterans

It's hard to acclimate a veteran in four days. But if the Packers feel comfortable doing that for a running back, there are some interesting alternatives. On other teams' practice squads, there are veterans like Leonard Fournette (Buffalo Bills), Melvin Gordon (Baltimore Ravens), and Kenyan Drake (Cleveland Browns).

The most interesting free agent options are former Tampa Bay Buccaneers' running back Ronald Jones and J. D. McKissic, who played within the system in 2016 with the Atlanta Falcons, when LaFleur was the team's quarterbacks coach.

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