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A New Preseason Hero is Born in Green Bay

Posted August 21, 2025

The preseason used to be mundane. Before, you’d just check the paper to see if anything of note happened, hope for no injuries, and move on. With the trimmed schedule, staffs lean harder into August reps to sharpen live timing for September. Green Bay has no interest in drifting into the regular season with rust.

Naturally, when the starters hit the bench, down-roster players get to shine and make their roster cases. This August, it’s an undrafted rookie running back turning heads at Lambeau: Amar Johnson.

Johnson arrived as a UDFA on May 2 out of South Dakota State, where he piled up more than 3,100 rushing yards and 28 TDs. Nothing was handed to him—only a playbook and a shot.

Taking the Long Way

Week 1 vs. the Jets, the spotlight finally found him. Trailing late, Johnson set up and then broke a 39-yard touchdown—Green Bay’s lone trip to the end zone—finishing the night with 7 carries for 67 yards and the first Lambeau Leap of the season. It didn’t change the result, but it changed the conversation. 

Showing Out the Next Weekend

Seven days later at Indianapolis, he did it again—this time to tie the game 16–16 with a physical 9-yard TD run in the fourth quarter, setting the stage for Sean Clifford’s winner in a 23–19 comeback. One week, one role. The next week, a bigger one. That’s how August jobs are won. 

Up next: the last audition—Seahawks at Packers, Saturday, Aug. 23 (kickoff 3:00 p.m. CDT) at Lambeau Field. For the staff, it’s the final look at the bottom of the depth chart. For Johnson, it’s another chance to make the numbers impossible to ignore.

Cutdown day is coming fast—Tuesday, Aug. 26 (by 4:00 p.m. ET). Clipboards, grades, and tough calls. For Green Bay, it’s a roster exercise. For Amar Johnson, it’s the moment a summer spark can become a seat in the room

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Former Packers 1,400-Yard Back Released — Begs for One More Shot in Green Bay
Minneapolis, MN NFL rosters are always in flux when training camp approaches, but few moves make fans look twice like the latest headline out of Minneapolis. A name Green Bay knows by heart suddenly hit the open market—and almost instantly, calls for a reunion rippled through Titletown. The report slipped out quietly: a veteran running back was released after a grind-it-out year in a new uniform. A journey once defined by winter-tough finishes and a bond with the Lambeau faithful just took another sharp turn. Only a few seasons ago, he was the heartbeat of Matt LaFleur’s offense in the biggest moments. Aaron Jones—the spark plug of so many December drives—brought burst, balance, and a blue-collar relentlessness that felt unmistakably “Green Bay.” In 2019 and 2020, he stacked back-to-back 1,400+ scrimmage-yard seasons, piling up touchdowns and carving out a place in Packers lore. “Green Bay will always be home. I gave everything for this city, and I’d do it again. Give me the chance to finish what I started,” Jones wrote—his message racing across social media and stirring the hearts of Packers fans. Drafted by Green Bay in 2017, Jones grew into a cornerstone under LaFleur, then departed in free agency to chase a bigger role. But at his most recent stop, nagging injuries and a crowded rotation kept him from finding the same rhythm. Now, after eight uneven games up north, he’s waiting on a fresh start—or better yet, the perfect ending back where he became a star. The Packers’ depth chart has playmakers and a new lead back in place, but plenty of analysts and fans are asking the same question: could a reunion be the timely piece for those grueling, late-season yards? The answer likely comes down to roster needs, the right price, and a front office willing to bet on the heart of a player who knows Lambeau in his bones. For Jones, the dream is simple: one more chance to run with the Packers—and to finish the story on Lombardi Avenue the way he always imagined.