League opens its review after police records surface
The NFL announced Saturday it will review additional allegations against Josh Jacobs as part of an investigation that remains open, saying in a league statement: "We will review these allegations as part of the investigation which has remained open."
The action followed the release of police records in response to a public records request that contain accounts from three women describing physical encounters with Jacobs in incidents dating to April 2021 and through 2022. Those reports, and accompanying law-enforcement materials, broaden the scope of the inquiry beyond the May incident that led to Jacobs' arrest earlier this year.
Police materials made public include investigative reports and law-enforcement footage tied to the May arrest, according to the records. The NFL’s review will incorporate the newly disclosed allegations alongside the material already under examination.
Details in the police reports
The released records show three separate accounts alleging physical confrontations with Jacobs across multiple dates. One woman described an encounter from April 2021 in which she said she was grabbed and pushed, suffering arm bruises and pain in her ribs. A second woman recounted a previously unreported incident from January 2022 in which she said she was slapped, grabbed by the throat and held down on a bed. A third woman told police that in May 2022 she was dragged by the head and neck and scratched on the chest, leaving marks that remained for months.
Those allegations were submitted to the Hobart/Lawrence Police Department and appear in the released records. The reports include narrative accounts from the women, and police released investigative reports as well as body-camera and dash-camera footage related to the May arrest.
Legal background and recent procedural developments
The newly disclosed accounts arrive against a backdrop of legal proceedings stemming from the May incident that initially drew the NFL’s attention. Jacobs was arrested in May after an incident in which he was accused of throwing his former girlfriend to the ground. He later entered a plea and in September pled no contest to misdemeanor battery and criminal property damage charges.
Officials ultimately reduced the case to two misdemeanors after prosecutors reviewed the evidence. Jacobs was originally booked on five charges, including strangulation, but prosecutors concluded only two misdemeanor charges were warranted; he later entered a plea agreement and the court schedule was altered to allow an earlier hearing in September.
In August the league placed Jacobs on the Commissioner’s Exempt List while charges were pending; he missed the first six games of the season before being reinstated on Oct. 19.
On-field return and context
Jacobs returned to play in Week 7 and appeared in the Packers’ 20-17 loss to the Detroit Lions, rushing 11 times for 36 yards and contributing 55 receiving yards with a receiving touchdown. He later had a 39-yard rushing game in the Packers' 27-19 win over the Carolina Panthers, adding a rushing touchdown and another receiving score.
Those performances mark his first game action since the exempt-list placement and legal resolution in September. The league’s decision to include the newly disclosed 2021–2022 accounts in its open investigation means Jacobs’ status could remain under review even as he has resumed playing.
The NFL said it will review the newly revealed allegations as part of an investigation that remains open. The league indicated the review will include the police reports that were released and the evidence already gathered from the May arrest as it determines whether any additional discipline or action is warranted.
