Josh Jacobs says his hands-behind-the-back touchdown celebration was about 'Break Every Chain'

Josh Jacobs scored his first touchdown at Lambeau Field this season Thursday night and put his hands behind his back in the end zone. Given his arrest earlier this year, the clip spread fast. After the Packers' 27-19 win over Carolina, Jacobs said everyone had it wrong.

The celebration was a nod to the gospel song "Break Every Chain," he said, and the TV shot cut it off.

"They didn't even get the whole celebration," Jacobs said, according to ESPN. "It was f---ing one second that they just showed me."

He said he and receiver Savion Williams planned two celebrations for his return. "Basically, last week, we said the first celebration, when I score, I was going to thank God. That's what I did last week," Jacobs said. "The second one was going to be 'Break Every Chain.' It's a gospel song." He added that several teammates made the same gesture.

"It's just a correlation, but like I said, the media [is] going to run with it," he said. "I didn't think it was going to be a thing that can be perceived a certain type of way. But it's 2026, and it is what it is."

Jacobs was arrested this year and charged with misdemeanor battery and destruction of property after an incident with a woman at his Green Bay-area home, ESPN reported. He pleaded no contest in September, was convicted of battery and got a deferred judgment on the property charge. He spent the first six games on the commissioner exempt list, and the NFL has not closed its personal conduct investigation.

Jacobs knows how it looked and is asking people to take his word for the rest. That is a big ask for a player with an open league investigation, and the Packers will hear about this one all week whether they like it or not.

The football did him no favors either. He ran 21 times for 39 yards against the league's worst rushing defense, with a 1-yard touchdown run and a 4-yard touchdown catch. He said the Lambeau crowd treated him well. "It was good for the team," Jacobs said. "Thursday night, electric, stadium packed."