The NFL said Thursday that Green Bay Packers running back Josh Jacobs remains on the commissioner’s exempt list after pleading no contest to two misdemeanor charges, with the league’s personal conduct review still open three days before the regular-season opener.
NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport posted the league’s statement: “We have been closely monitoring all developments in the matter which remains under review of the personal conduct policy. There is no change to his status as he remains on the Commissioner’s Exempt list.”
Jacobs appeared in Brown County Circuit Court and entered no contest pleas to misdemeanor battery and criminal damage to property. Judge Marc A. Hammer convicted him on the battery count and imposed a $1,000 fine plus court costs.
The court accepted a deferred judgment agreement on the property-damage charge. Conditions include no further criminal acts, no contact with the victim, supervision, counseling and restitution. A review hearing is set for Sept. 10, 2027. Jacobs’ attorneys said that charge will be dismissed if he completes the terms.
“I fully understand the seriousness of the situation and I take full responsibility,” Jacobs told the court. He left the courthouse without speaking to reporters.
His lawyers, David Chesnoff, Richard Schonfeld and Clarence Duchac, said in a statement: “With this agreement, Josh has accepted responsibility for his conduct and resolved this matter. Today’s resolution is set against a career long history of Josh’s community work while in the NFL, which has centered on the circumstances of his early life.” They noted he had already begun counseling.
The charges stem from a May 23 disturbance at Jacobs’ home in Hobart. According to the criminal complaint, surveillance video showed the woman trying to leave the garage when Jacobs “grabbed her and threw her to the ground and she struck her head, suffering an injury.” Police also said he damaged her phone.
Hobart-Lawrence officers initially referred additional counts, including felony strangulation and suffocation and several domestic-abuse enhancers. The Brown County District Attorney’s Office filed only the two misdemeanors on Aug. 27 and did not pursue the felony or domestic-violence designations under state law.
The NFL placed Jacobs on the commissioner’s exempt list after those charges were announced. The designation keeps him off the 53-man roster, bars him from practicing or attending games, and still pays his salary. With club permission he may use team facilities for meetings, individual work and rehabilitation.
League policy sets a baseline six-game unpaid suspension for first violations involving battery, domestic violence or similar conduct, with adjustments possible for aggravating or mitigating factors. Time already spent on the exempt list can count toward a later suspension, though the player must repay salary for those games.
Jacobs, 28, is a three-time Pro Bowl selection. In seven NFL seasons he has rushed for 7,803 yards and 74 touchdowns on 1,840 carries. He ran for 1,329 yards and 15 scores in 2024, his first year in Green Bay, then added 929 yards and 13 rushing touchdowns in 15 games last season.
The Packers open Sunday at Minnesota without him. They traded for running back Kaleb Johnson on Aug. 30, the same day Jacobs was placed on the exempt list, and list MarShawn Lloyd and Chris Brooks as the primary backs available.
Jacobs signed a four-year, $48 million deal with Green Bay in 2024 after five seasons with the Raiders. He has no prior criminal record noted in court filings. The league has not announced a timetable for completing its review or deciding discipline.
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