5 ways the Packers can turn their season around in final 9 games

3. Better production from the running game

With all of the changes that occurred in Green Bay this past offseason, it is more than safe to say that most expected a more effective Packers rushing attack. The problem? This assumption has not played out on the field through the first half of this season.

Green Bay ranks 23rd in rushing yards (802), 22nd in rushing yards per game (100.4), 17th in yards per carry (4.0), and 20th in rushing touchdowns (5), with their -13.3 expected points contributed by their ground game being the 11th-worst in the NFL. This is a massive problem for a team going through a quarterback transition.

A large reason why Green Bay's ground game has struggled to do much of anything this season has been the availability of Aaron Jones. Jones has missed three games this season, in addition to making small contributions in three games from Week 4 through Week 7.

Jones was finally able to reach a high volume of carries for the first time this season in the 20-3 win over the Los Angeles Rams, carrying the ball 20 times, which just so happens to be the same total from the previous three games he appeared in. The amount of rush attempts contributed to a season-high rushing total of 73 yards in the contest. While there is some more work to do, this is an encouraging sign moving forward.

While Jones was unavailable/limited due to injury, AJ Dillon was called into action with mostly underwhelming results. Dillon has eclipsed the four-yard-per-carry threshold just twice, but both of those came with Jones in the lineup. As a starter, Dillon would average just 54.7 yards per game on 15.3 attempts. Even though the opportunities were there for Dillon, he was simply not able to do enough with them.

Ideally, with Jones back in the fold, Green Bay's rushing game can get on track and look like the unit that most projected them to be. This would not only help their overall numbers on the year but should be able to take some pressure off of Jordan Love and potentially find some sort of level that they have been lacking for most of the season.