Green Bay Packers: James Jones could be the new Andre Rison
By Dan Kasper
The Green Bay Packers made a free agent signing when they signed James Jones on Sunday, one day after he was cut from the New York Giants. It was a move that many speculated would happen as soon as Jordy Nelson injured his knee and was declared out for the regular season. It’s a move that many fans are happy the Packers made.
There is no question that it is impossible to replace a player like Jordy Nelson. The connection that Nelson and Aaron Rodgers have is one of the best, if not the best, in the league. Anyone can make the argument Nelson was a top-five and easily top-10 receiver in the league. Replacing your MVP quarterback’s No. 1 target is no easy task, and nearly impossible.
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Though with Jones, the Packers acquire a player that helps the team in many ways. First, he provides a veteran leadership that will be needed within the receiving group. Randall Cobb was the most veteran receiver of the group before Jones and Cobb just turned 25.
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Nothing against Cobb, but the Packers will benefit by having Jones, who was with the team when they won Super Bowl XLV. Jones already has relationships with Cobb and Davante Adams, so there won’t be much of an adjustment period.
Second, Jones gives the Packers the depth they need. Even if Jones is, at worst, the number four receiver on the depth chart, he improves the depth of the Packers. You can’t have too many good players on your team at any given point. Jones gives the Packers more flexibility with their receiving group and it allows the offense to move Ty Montgomery into the slot more often.
Plus, if Cobb isn’t right at 100 percent when the season starts, the Packers would be in real trouble without Jones.
Third, and most importantly, Jones already has a connection with Aaron Rodgers and Rodgers already trusts Jones. Rodgers has said time and time again that he has to trust his receivers and if the Packers were going to bring in a receiver a week before the regular season, it had to be someone that Rodgers would trust.
Jones will be able to step right in and contribute right away because of his connection with Rodgers already. There will be no adjustment period between the two, just a refreshment period.
So, can Jones help lead the Packers to a Super Bowl?
Maybe the Packers can touch on their history a bit to help them and look back to when the Packers won Super Bowl XXXI. The Packers lost their No. 1 receiver, Robert Brooks, to a knee injury early in the season and Antonio Freeman missed some time due to a broken arm.
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Then-general manager Ron Wolf made the move to sign Andre Rison and the move paid off, as Rison helped the team clinch a Super Bowl victory. Wolf obviously knew at the time he had a team capable of winning a Super Bowl then and made a move to help the team reach that goal.
His pupil, current general manager Ted Thompson, was on staff with Wolf. Could he be making the same type of move?
In signing Jones, it’s obvious that Thompson knows he has a team capable of winning the Super Bowl. He knew he had to make a move to sign a player to help the receiving group, as long as it was the right player and Jones fits the bill. Thompson is following his mentor’s steps in giving his team every chance to compete for a Super Bowl title and win it.
You can’t replace a Jordy Nelson, but a James Jones can help ease the pain and still help lead the Packers to a Super Bowl.
James Jones could be the 2015 Packers version of Andre Rison.
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