GREEN BAY – Ben Sirmans has coached long enough in the NFL to recognize what's past is prologue in the world of developing, and sometimes replacing, running backs.
As the longest-tenured player or coach on the Packers' payroll, Sirmans has seen firsthand how quickly a rash of injuries can derail best-laid plans at his position.
Unfortunately, that's where things stand again for Green Bay and its ninth-year backfield coach after rookie third-round pick MarShawn Lloyd (ankle) was placed injured reserve this week.
It's another blow for a Packers backfield already playing without veteran AJ Dillon, who was placed on season-ending injured reserve last month due to a recurring stinger.
As difficult as it is to proceed without Dillon (for the season) and Lloyd (for at least four games), it's a position with which Sirmans is quite familiar.
"I never looked at circumstances as, 'Oh man, it's difficult we don't have this guy anymore,'" Sirmans said. "I always looked at it as, 'OK, opportunity for the next man to show what he can do,' because no matter who you have out there, as an offense and as a team, you're going to be depending on that person to perform, and then they're going to depend on me to make sure that person is ready to perform."
In this case, the latest attendee to the school of Sirmans is former Miami running back Chris Brooks, who was signed to the active roster Tuesday after a two-week stay on the Packers' practice squad.
Brooks, 24, made some noise as an undrafted rookie on the Dolphins' 53-man roster last year. The former Cal and BYU running back rushed for 106 yards on 19 carries, busting a 52-yard run in Miami's 70-20 destruction of Denver last September.
Injuries recently have slowed the 6-foot-1, 219-pound running back's ascent. Brooks spent a portion of the 2023 regular season on injured reserve with a leg injury and finished training camp this summer in concussion protocol after rushing for 103 yards on just 17 carries (6.1 yards per carry) in the preseason.
The Dolphins reached an injury settlement with Brooks on Sept. 2, and the Packers quickly pounced to sign him to their practice squad the following day. His first two weeks in a Green Bay uniform left Head Coach Matt LaFleur "super impressed."
"He was a guy that we were looking at toward the end (of camp) as a potential guy that we would be interested in," LaFleur said.
"He's a very serious guy about ball and I love his running style. He runs with a good forward lean, he's got great body control, he can stick his foot in the ground and he's one of those one-cut runners. I think he's really intelligent, so he's picked up our protections no problem. I'm excited about him."
There are a lot of similarities and parallels between the terminology of LaFleur's offense and the scheme the Dolphins employ under Mike McDaniel, who, like LaFleur, sprouts from the Shanahan coaching tree.
To his credit, Brooks has been a model student from the moment he arrived, constantly studying the playbook and reviewing his notes. The Packers view his background on special teams (105 snaps across multiple units last season) as an added plus.
Asked to describe his playstyle, Brooks responds in a modest tone.
"I'd like to think I run hard," Brooks said. "Relentless effort, doing what I can to be a team player and help this team the best that I can."
A former school teacher, Sirmans has always embraced the challenges of an NFL season. He's been in this position practically a dozen times before, beginning with Ty Montgomery's in-season conversion to running back in 2016.
Over the past eight years, Sirmans has been charged with getting in-season acquisitions such as Kenyan Drake, James Robinson, Tyler Ervin, Kapri Bibbs, Tra Carson, Christine Michael and Knile Davis all up to speed on Green Bay's system.
In Brooks, Sirmans sees a student who's ahead of the curve after working with well-respected Dolphins running backs coach Eric Studesville. So far, Sirmans' primary duty has really been acclimating Brooks to the Packers' playbook and culture.
"He's a guy that hits the holes," Sirmans said. "He's been trained in this offense. It's basically the same offense in Miami. So, there's a lot of things that we do that he's already familiar with. His ability in outside zone is everything that we teach in terms of how he hits the holes – he's one cut and now he's gone."
For now, Brooks remains mostly an insurance policy behind All-Pro running back Josh Jacobs and second-year veteran Emanuel Wilson, whom Sirmans feels confident is ready for more snaps and touches if the situation should call for it.
Meanwhile, Brooks says he'll be ready for any and every opportunity thrown his way, the same blueprint to which the 24-year-old running back adhered on Green Bay's practice squad the past 15 days.
"My thought process was whatever I do, attack it to the best of my ability whether it'd be practice squad, active," Brooks said. "Just attack whatever I'm given."
