Green Bay Packers: Eddie Lacy Shined on an Otherwise Dark Night on Sunday

There weren't a lot of bright moments for the Green Bay Packers in their 44-23 defeat at the hands of the New Orleans Saints on Sunday night at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, but the performance of running back Eddie Lacy did stick out and shine.

Lacy ran for 59 yards on 13 carries (4.5 average) with eight catches for 123 more yards. That's 182 total yards.

No. 27 ran extremely hard in both cases and broke a lot of tackles with second and third efforts.

This excellent display happened right in front of his parents, who were at the game wearing his jersey. Lacy grew up in Gretna, Louisiana, which is right across the Mississippi River from New Orleans. Because of Hurricane Katrina, Lacy and his family had to relocate to another part of Louisiana.

Heading into his second season for the Packers, Lacy wanted to become a three-down running back. This goal came after he won the 2013 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year, a season in which he ran for 1,178 yards and scored 11 touchdowns.

But to be a complete back, you have to be able to catch the ball effectively and be a steady blocker picking up blitzes.

Lacy did have 35 receptions in 2013 for 257 yards, but his blocking was not as good as it could have been.

Based on what we saw on Sunday night, it looks as though Lacy is becoming the type of back he wants to be.

Head coach Mike McCarthy went out of his way to praise Lacy's effort in the game when he talked to the media on Monday, via Packers.com.

"

It's what you are looking for. You're looking for the complete player that he is. The opportunities came last night. The ability to run the football. He's a lot more than just a big 230-pound back.

He can run it. Excellent pass protection. I mean his chips and scan on the first third down, the big play to Randall (Cobb), the 70-yard play. And his ability on the checkdowns underneath. It was great to get him involved in the screen game, as he hadn't had a lot of opportunities there in games.

I thought Eddie had his best game as a Packer. I was very pleased with the way he played.

"

Through eight games, Lacy has 428 yards rushing (4.1 average) and four touchdowns. The former Alabama Crimson Tide star also has 21 receptions for 209 yards.

Although the rushing yardage projects to less than 1,000 yards this season, his yards-per-carry average is exactly the same as it was last season. Plus, he projects to over 40 catches this season.

But the biggest thing Lacy has improved on is his blocking.

As McCarthy said, Lacy is a "complete player." That was certainly on display Sunday night, and there should be plenty more opportunities to see his versatility in the second half of the season.