Green Bay Packers Add Running Back Christine Michael In An Attempt To Reclaim NFC North

Being in third place in the NFC North is not what the Green Bay Packers are used to. An up and down season is something that the Packers know all too well about. As they search for solutions to a dismal showing the Packers are hoping to catch lightning in a bottle with yet another uncharacteristic midseason move. Will it work for the Green Bay Packers as they attempt to reclaim their normal place atop the NFC North?

ESPN is reporting that the Green Bay Packers have claimed the recently cut Christine Michael off of waivers.

The Packers are not playing up to their expectations this season, and there is a litany of reasons for the struggles. One of them would be that the Green Bay Packers’ wide receivers are not gaining separation, causing quarterback Aaron Rodgers to force the football into tight areas. It has turned into some uneven play for one of the NFL’s best passers.

What can make things easier for Rodgers and the Packers’ offense is a legitimate running game.

The ankle injury to incumbent starting tailback Eddie Lacy led to surgery, that may have cost him his season. It also could have hurt the Packers chances at returning to the postseason yet again.

While Lacy hopes to return (courtesy of Alabama Local News) to the Packers active roster before the end of the season, the team has a current issue. Not being able to run with the football is turning the Green Bay Packers into a one-dimensional team. And as good as Aaron Rodgers is, he needs some balance on offense to avoid being predictable.

Wide receiver Ty Montgomery has filled in at running back. The Green Bay Packers even made a trade (courtesy of Pro Football Talk) with the Kansas City Chiefs for RB Knile Davis, in hopes to boost the ground game.

Experimenting with Davis did not work out as expected. The Packers would go on to cut ties with him just weeks after acquiring him.

Christine Michael became available to the Green Bay Packers after it was announced by NFL.com that the Seattle Seahawks waived him on Monday.

The Green Bay Packers are hoping that Michael can somehow revitalize their rushing attack. His addition comes just in time for the second half of the NFL season to truly begin. Even if Christine Michael can provide a modest boost at running back, the Packers can create enough balance to take some pressure off of Aaron Rodgers.

#Packers claim RB Christine Michael off waivers & place RB Don Jackson on IR: https://t.co/Q4VIMADTJ2 pic.twitter.com/lXjTGddXHu

— Green Bay Packers (@packers) November 16, 2016

Giving Christine Michael some carries at running back will allow Ty Montgomery to spend some more time catching passes. But the Packers will have to actually use Michael. It almost seems as if Knile Davis was on the Packers for as long as it takes a person to drink a cup of coffee. The Green Bay Packers rarely used him.

Perhaps Davis was not fully grasping the the Packers’ offensive playbook.

Currently, the Packers are sitting with a 4-5 record and are in danger of missing the NFL playoffs. Adding Christine Michael could help matters if he is used.

The one advantage that Michael has over Davis is the timing. When the Packers traded for Knile Davis, they only had two days to get him up to speed with the playbook. Rarely does anyone get a full grasp of a team’s offensive playbook in a month’s time, let alone two days. Michael will have a few more days to study the plays and terminology down. He will still have some struggles early on, but if the Packers give him about 6-8 carries, it could work wonders for their offense.

It is too soon to consider the Christine Michael addition a good move by the Green Bay Packers, but it is a step in a positive direction. Aaron Rodgers may finally get a full complement of wide receivers.

[Featured Image by Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images]