Packers activate RB Josh Jacobs for Lions game after six weeks on NFL exempt list

Green Bay Packers running back Josh Jacobs was activated Saturday after spending the first six weeks of the season on the NFL's commissioner exempt list, and he is expected to play, likely as the lead back, against the Detroit Lions on Sunday in Week 7. The league placed him on the list Aug. 30, three days after he was charged with misdemeanor battery and misdemeanor criminal damage to property over a May incident involving his then-girlfriend. He pleaded no contest to both counts. The list barred him from playing or practicing, though coach Matt LaFleur said he could attend meetings and lift. A criminal complaint alleges Jacobs grabbed the woman in the garage of his Wisconsin home, threw her to the ground and broke her phone. The NFL has said his return does not hinder its ongoing investigation, and he can still be suspended; a suspension of six games or fewer would count as already served. Earlier this week Jacobs, 28, told reporters he was remorseful and sorry for putting the team in this situation.

Left-leaning outlets had not reported this story at the time of writing, while alternative/independent and right-leaning outlets had. Among right-leaning outlets, Fox News puts the domestic violence arrest in its headline and stresses that the NFL's investigation continues despite the no-contest pleas. It also gives the Aug. 30 timeline and LaFleur's comments on what Jacobs could do while on the list. Its text includes unrelated promotional copy about a Jalen Hurts interview. The New York Post calls it a battery incident and leads with Jacobs' own words of remorse, relayed from The Athletic. It adds the complaint's allegations, his age and the suspension math, and credits ESPN for the activation news. Both agree on the dates, charges, pleas and open investigation; they differ mainly in emphasis. ESPN, the independent source, offers only a short note on his season debut.