Anyone who watched the Green Bay Packers play last year knows Eddie Lacy needs to lose weight.
Lacy was scolded by head coach Mike McCarthy about his weight after the team lost to the Arizona Cardinals in the playoffs.
“Eddie’s got a lot of work to do,” McCarthy said (h/t Pro Football Talk). “I’m stating the obvious. His offseason last year was not what it should be and he never recovered from it. He cannot play at the weight he did this year.”
Shortly afterwards, P90X creator Tony Horton reached out to Lacy’s camp to lend a hand, and the latest word in that department is that Lacy’s camp was in talks with Horton about his offer.
Green Bay knows what kind of offense it can have when Lacy is at his best. He was outstanding his first two seasons before the disappointments of this past year when he gained just 758 yards and scored only three rushing touchdowns.
His poor production in 2015 was a direct result of poor conditioning and excessive weight, which is why the Packers are looking for some serious improvement next year.
Key part of #Packers plan to return to dominance: GB wants Eddie Lacy to lose 30 pounds. He's committed to it, thru camp or fitness program
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) February 1, 2016
Lacy is 5-foot-11 and is listed at 234 pounds, but he likely was in the 250-260 range during the playoffs. His huge 61-yard gain against the Cardinals was more funny than exciting, and memes sprung up like wildflowers after he ran out of steam in the open field.
https://twitter.com/Lbirch2425/status/689456353937518592
The Packers invested a second-round pick in Lacy, and their offense is much better when he’s consistently pounding the rock. However, because of his weight issues this past year he only managed 187 carries, which is a paltry number for a featured back.
Lacy must take his health seriously or the Packers will be forced to move on. He’s one of the most talented running backs to come into the league the past few years, and it would be a shame if he didn’t take advantage of his opportunity.