It’s time for Green Bay Packers to fully unleash Aaron Jones
Aaron Jones is one of the best running backs in the entire NFL, and it’s past time the Green Bay Packers fully unleash him.
The Green Bay Packers have one of, if not the, most complete backfields in the NFL. Their third-stringer is a second-round pick from the 2020 NFL Draft with a bright future ahead of him and their backup could be a starter on a number of teams across the league. However, their best running back–by far, hands down, and no questions asked–is fourth-year pro Aaron Jones.
The 26-year-old out of UTEP was taken in the fifth round of 2017 Draft and had a slow start to his season. In his rookie year, he played in 12 games, racking up only 81 rushes for 448 yards and four touchdowns. Even then he showed off his wiggle and potential, with a couple of huge runs for the Pack. Unfortunately, his season ended early after an injury against the Minnesota Vikings.
He came back strong the next year, accruing 50 more rushing attempts while still maintaining an impressive 5.5 yards per carry. At this point, it was clear Jones had a bright future in Green Bay and could possibly be the lead back for years to come. The only question that remained was his durability, as he missed four games throughout the year once again.
When head coach Matt LaFleur took over before the 2019 season, it was unclear whether it would be Jones or Jamaal Williams who would take over the lead back duties. However, Jones jumped to the front of the line with flair and established himself as one of the best backs in the league with a breakout 2019 campaign when he had over 1500 total yards and 19 total touchdowns. Impressive, to say the least.
Despite his monster season, the Packers were conservative with Jones, ensuring they never overtaxed the undersized back. His 236 carries ranked 15th in the NFL and he only ran the ball more than 20 times on three occasions.
Fast forward to 2020, when Jones has had an even better season. After seeing his yards per rush dip to 4.6 last year, it’s come back up 5.5–the same place he finished with limited carries in his first two seasons. He’s been even more dynamic and has been a true game-changer for the Packers in both the running and passing game.
Similar to the rest of his career, LaFleur was once again conservative with Jones (who missed two games due to injury). Partly because of the emergence of Williams and A.J. Dillon and potentially because of Jones’ injury history, Jones actually averaged fewer carries per game this season, and he never had a game where he carried the ball more than 20 times.
LaFleur was probably smart to limit Jones in the regular season, especially considering the Packers had other weapons who could pick up the slack. However, the playoffs is what they were saving him for and it’s time to unleash Jones.
Williams is a great backup and all, but that’s exactly what he is–a backup. Jones is the clear lead dog in this situation and Green Bay should treat him as such. There’s no reason he shouldn’t get 20-25 touches a game along with other elite running backs such as Derrick Henry, Dalvin Cook, Joe Mixon, Josh Jacobs and Christian McCaffrey. There’s no saying what he could do with the ball in his hands more often.
As for Jones’ future, well, it may sound harsh but with his pending free agent status that’s not as much of a concern for Green Bay. Jones recently switched agents and all signs point to him wanting to get PAID this offseason. That’s probably not in the Packers’ financial means.
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Jones has earned the opportunity to make plays with the ball more often, and LaFleur should allow him to do so. He’s one of their only consistent offensive skill players and the playoffs is when you want your best players to have the ball most often. It sounds simple (because it is), but hopefully, LaFleur can free the reigns on one of his best players.