Injury to DuJuan Harris Puts Even More Pressure on Green Bay Packers Rookie RB Eddie Lacy


Cary Edmondson-USA Today Sports

The Green Bay Packers best attribute on offense is no secret — they are a pass first team and that’s thanks in large part to the talent level and leadership of Pro Bowl quarterback, Aaron Rodgers. However, the Packers have been searching far and wide for an answer to their running attack over the past few seasons and at the tail end of the 2012 season, DuJuan Harris emerged as the team’s starter.

Green Bay then drafted Eddie Lacy — a projected first round pick who slipped into the Packers’ hands and instantly increased the team’s expectations in the back field heading into this season. Harris and Lacy were expected to form a solid one-two punch this year, but that no longer appears to be the case.

Green Bay announced on Tuesday afternoon that they have moved Harris to the injured reserved list following a knee injury in the team’s previous preseason contest. The injury to Harris will likely involve surgery and a recovery process, but many details are still unknown.

With Harris now down, Lacy is expected to pick up even more slack in the team’s running game. Many Green Bay fans already had high expectations for their back field rookie and even with Harris in the fold, Lacy was expected to be the guy with the Packers. Well now, that much is obvious.

Lacy is only a rookie and it remains to be seen just how effective he can be right out of the gate for Green Bay. With that being said however, the pressure on him to perform is at the forefront as he is a critical key to the team’s offensive success. If Lacy can produce, Green Bay can open their dangerous passing attack even more. If not, the Packers may find themselves in similar scenarios to what they have been dealing with over the past few seasons.

Which, if you look at their recent success, may not be the end of the world, but it will still be something worth monitoring.

 

Follow Paul Seaver on Twitter: @PaulSeaverRS and add him to your network on Google.

 



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