The Green Bay Packers have championship aspirations for this season but they’ll still have their eyes on the rest of the NFC North.
The Detroit Lions remain the front runner to win their third straight division title and the Minnesota Vikings have loaded up the roster around new starting quarterback J.J. McCarthy. Even the Chicago Bears feel like they’ve improved by hiring Ben Johnson to work with Caleb Williams and the Packers will have a lot of work to do just to replicate their 11-win season from a year ago.
But just like the teams, the Packers will have an eye on some of their former players. That includes someone who used to call Green Bay home and may be in for a reduced workload heading into this season.
Jordan Mason took the first snap Monday of the Vikings' first full-pads team drill. I don't think there's much to read into, other than confirming earlier indications that he'll be in a relatively equal load share with Aaron Jones. STORY:https://t.co/ihLbbsWwY6
— Kevin Seifert (@SeifertESPN) July 29, 2025
Former Packers RB Aaron Jones Reportedly to be in “Relatively Equal” Timeshare with Vikings
According to ESPN’s Kevin Seifert, former Packers running back Aaron Jones is slated to be in a “relatively equal” timeshare with newly acquired running back Jordan Mason. Jones had a successful first season with the Vikings, running for 1,138 yards and five touchdowns but the idea to mix Mason in is an attempt to keep him fresh for the second half of the season.
“Based on camp observations so far, that’s exactly what is likely to happen – even after Jones set career highs in touches (306), carries (255), offensive snaps (700) and rushing yards at the relatively ancient age of 30,” Seifert wrote. “While it appears unlikely that the split between Mason and Jones will be 50-50, early indications that it will be much closer to the [2:1] previous splits under O’Connell.”
Jones probably saw the writing on the wall when the Vikings acquired Mason from the San Francisco 49ers last spring. A 5-foot-11, 223-pound hammer, Mason broke out with 789 yards and three touchdowns on 153 carries last season and was one of the best backs in average yards after contact at 3.35 last season.
Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell also noted that the addition of Mason should make the backfield more dynamic and improve on the 19th-ranked rushing attack from last season.
“We’ve got truly a combination that will cause a lot of problems,” O’Connell said. “Between having two great backs that are different body types, maybe different skill sets. But they’re complete backs. …There’s a lot of things that we’re going to try. And then, as we get towards the season, what gives us advantages?”
It’s probably not the role Jones envisioned when he signed a two-year, $20 million contract to stay in Minnesota last spring. But it might be the best way to get the most out of him in his 30s. The Packers are happy with workhorse Josh Jacobs in their backfield and could finally answer the question if two backs are better than one when the division rivals square off this season.