GREEN BAY, Wis. – James Starks keeps putting his coach in a difficult position.
Mike McCarthy would like to use the Green Bay Packers veteran running back, who is having his most productive season, in combination with Eddie Lacy as the one-two punch he’s strived for in recent years. The problem is, Starks keeps putting the ball on the ground. His fumble in Sunday’s loss to the Arizona Cardinals was his career-high fifth of the season and his second in as many games.
In one season, the sixth-year veteran has doubled his career fumble total.
Each of his last two fumbles came on runs to the left, yet in both cases he failed to switch the ball to his left hand, leaving it exposed to defenders in the middle of the field.
“Sometimes you could tend to like get a little comfortable or you’re not paying attention and just running and the ball could be low and you don’t see everybody,” Starks said Wednesday. “And that’s kind of what the case has been for me.”
McCarthy puts the Packers through multiple ball-security drills in practice every day and if that hasn't worked, his only other recourse is to consider benching Starks all together in Sunday’s regular-season finale against the Minnesota Vikings.
Starks did not go back into the game after he fumbled on the first play from scrimmage in the second half against the Cardinals on Sunday. Rookie John Crockett served as Lacy’s backup the rest of the game.
“You’ve got to hold on to the football,” McCarthy said this week. “That’s been the case for what, 10 years now? If you don’t take care of the football, you won’t play. So, I mean, that goes without being said. James has put the ball on the ground consecutive weeks now, and that’s got to stop. It obviously affected his reps in the Arizona game.”
Starks, who has career-highs in both rushing yards (571) and total touchdowns (three rushing, two receiving), said there are other things that can be done in practice to work on his fumbling problem.
“Get in different weird positions, and I’ve got to hold on to the ball,” he said. “It ain’t really like an excuse for why I do it. I’ve just got to get better with it – just practicing holding it high and tight and being responsibility for it and being more cautious of when it’s loose.”
The way Lacy has produced the last six weeks, the Packers might be better served to ride him the rest of the way. Since rushing for 100 yards in the Week 11 victory over the Vikings, Lacy ranks sixth in the NFL in rushing yards (416). And that includes the Dec. 3 game at Detroit, where he rushed only five times for 4 yards after missing curfew the previous night.
“There are things that went on earlier in the year, and hopefully we’re past all that,” McCarthy said of Lacy. “Sometimes it takes the running game a little bit longer to get going than the passing game. I think history will point to that.”
