Since Josh Jacobs entered the NFL from Alabama as a first-round selection in the 2019 draft, only two players have had more than 1,500 touches – Jacobs and another former Crimson Tide running back, Derrick Henry.

Workhorse running backs may not be as plentiful as they once were in the NFL, but Jacobs aims to keep the tradition going for another season with the Green Bay Packers.

Jacobs signed with the Packers on Friday as an unrestricted free agent after spending his first five NFL seasons with the Las Vegas Raiders.

“You got to take care of yourself,” Jacobs said about the ability to carry the load at running back for an NFL team. “That was the biggest adjustment, I would say, coming from college to the pros was learning how to take care of yourself. I kind of had the opportunity to really speak with Tom Brady and all of these kind of guys that kind of guided me along with that, whether it’s nutrition or getting your body worked on on certain things as quickly as possible in order to stay as fresh as possible.

“Obviously, playing the running back, that’s a hard thing to do. It’s a constant job and something you got to be meticulous with. So for me, it’s been interesting, but, hopefully, I can figure it out here and get everything acclimated with the people that’s out here that do the body work and things like that.”

A quarterback, Brady appeared in 23 NFL seasons and played in 335 regular-season and 48 playoff games.

“My first thing that I learned from him is the guy’s really cool,” Jacobs said about Brady. “I didn’t think he was going to be that cool. And he surprised me because my very first conversation with him, he knew my name and everything. And I was like, ‘Tom Brady knows who I am.’

“But he’ll just tell you, man. Like he’s a real dude. He’ll tell you what you need to expect, the type of mentality that you need to have. Even with off-the-field stuff, man, he’s an open book, and it’s rare to find a lot of guys like that, especially that’s accomplished as much as he has in this league, so I’m definitely grateful for that.”

Jacobs figures playing his home games on the famous frozen tundra of Lambeau Field might just save just save wear and tear on his body.

“As a running back, you love playing in the cold,” Jacobs said, “because people don’t hit you, and then after a while you start to wear on them. It just makes it a lot easier.”

As the 2022 NFL rushing champion, Jacobs had other options in free agency.

“I had a few to choose from,” Jacobs said, “but ultimately it came down to what I seen and what I feel like I believe in in this team – the history of this organization – and feeling like I’m wanted by an organization. That’s really what it came down to. …

“It was like 10 or 12 teams, and it was kind of weird because they all was hitting me at once. It was like a small window, so I’m like, ‘Man.’ You’re trying to weigh your options, figure it all out. But ultimately, like I said, I just like what they had going on over here. Going to the playoffs and actually competing for the Super Bowl and things like that is something that I always wanted to be a part of. I told them that playoff ball is a little different, and I really haven’t experienced it. But that was definitely something that I wanted to leave my mark on.”

Jacobs has played in one postseason game in his NFL career.

The Packers have been to the playoffs in four of the past five seasons. In quarterback Jordan Love’s first season as Green Bay’s starter, the Packers defeated the Dallas Cowboys 48-32 and lost to the San Francisco 49ers 24-21 in the 2023 postseason.

“Young quarterback, young skill guys, good offensive line,” Jacobs said about Green Bay, “so as a running back, you can’t load the box. And when you do, you still got guys that can move people around. I think that’s the thing that excited me the most.”

Since free agency opened on Wednesday afternoon, 12 running backs have been reported as signing with new teams, according to the sports-financial website spotrac.com. Jacobs’ four-year, $48 million contract is the longest and has the most total value of any of the running-back deals, although not the most guaranteed money. Jacobs’ contract included a $12.5 million signing bonus, which is the guaranteed portion of the deal.

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.