GREEN BAY – As NFL rookie seasons go, MarShawn Lloyd may have set the mark for a myriad of misfortune in 2024.
After hip and hamstring injuries sidelined the Packers' rookie third-round pick for most of the summer, Lloyd injured his ankle just six carries into Green Bay's home opener against Indianapolis.
Despite being placed on injured reserve, Lloyd stayed positive and appeared to be on the cusp of returning to the active roster in mid-November when he began feeling pain in the right side of his stomach.
The 5-foot-9, 220-pound running back reported his symptoms to the Packers' training staff and was sent to a local hospital. The diagnosis? Appendicitis that required emergency surgery.
Lloyd didn't play another snap this season, as he also continued to deal with his hamstring. Standing at his locker on Monday, Lloyd couldn't help but smile when reviewing his bad luck.
"Everything happens for a reason," Lloyd said. "That's the thing that went through my head. I've always tried to (say), 'OK, why did this happen?' But at the end of the day you just gotta go with it."
Heralded as a Day 2 gem by several draft pundits last April, the 24-year-old running back was expected to play a major role in Green Bay's renovated backfield also consisting of All-Pro Josh Jacobs and fifth-year veteran AJ Dillon.
While healing from the appendectomy, Lloyd was still left searching for answers to what was going on with his hamstring. Each setback tested Lloyd's mettle more and more.
It culminated in an enlightening consultation earlier this month with the hamstring specialists at Badger Athletic Performance on the campus of the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
It's the same experts who helped chart a path forward for both Packers receiver Christian Watson and cornerback Eric Stokes last offseason after hamstring injuries sidelined them in 2023.
"They told me how well it worked for them," said Lloyd of his conversations with Watson and Stokes. "Just being there from last year to this year, how well they were able to stay healthy. Just being able to hear from them but also just know that it can help me, I'm excited about that."
The BAP specialists conducted a battery of tests on Lloyd, including running on different treadmills, to check for deficiencies in his body and measure which areas may be stronger than others. The exam lasted about five total hours.
Lloyd said he never experienced anything quite like it and is already adhering to the blueprint the doctors laid out for him.
"The science around it is crazy," Lloyd said. "Already started my plan. I've been working on the things that I need to work on. Madison has some smart people down there. I was able to figure out some things about myself."
Lloyd stayed in Green Bay throughout, even driving Jacobs to practice every day while peppering the All-Pro running back with questions.
Independently, Lloyd stayed in his playbook, watched every practice he could and worked closely with position coach Ben Sirmans on the nuances of playing running back in the NFL.
Although he didn't get to see much of Lloyd as a rookie, Sirmans was impressed by the "electrifying runs" the former USC and South Carolina running back showed on the scout team when he was able to practice this season.
"Some of the things are freakish that obviously happened to him," said Sirmans last month. "Obviously, he's disappointed the way the year has gone for him but it's almost, to a degree, like having a redshirt year from the standpoint of the time that he's missed."
In addition to Lloyd's troubles, the Packers also lost Dillon for the season to a neck injury. They successfully navigated their absence thanks in part to the development of second-year running back Emanuel Wilson and Chris Brooks, who was elevated from the practice squad after Lloyd went on IR.
Looking for a bounce-back year in 2025, Lloyd believes he has something to add to the Packers' most productive rushing offense in more than two decades.
"Josh had a really good year, and I do think and I do know that I can help him a lot," Lloyd said. "He had a lot of hits on his body, I'm there to help and he knows that. It's going to be fun when I get out there on the field to play with him."
Lloyd's offseason "to-do" list starts with putting the injuries behind him and kicking things back into full gear. His goal is to physically be able to do everything again when the Packers report for the offseason program in April.
For everything that went wrong in 2024, Lloyd hopes to make it right in 2025.
"Some of the things, the appendix thing you can't control that, but I just gotta keep my foot on everything I need to do to be able to help this team as much as possible," Lloyd said.
"It's been a very, very rough year, but I got time. I'm getting healthy, so I'm getting there. Then it's just attacking the offseason and being ready to go."
