Contract Terms
A day after his release by the Green Bay Packers, Aaron Jones is expected to sign with the Minnesota Vikings on a one-year, $7 million deal, NFL Network's Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero reported Tuesday.
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Fantasy Football Impact
Jones will remain in the NFC North. After spending seven seasons with Green Bay, Jones was released Monday to make room for fellow running back Josh Jacobs, who reached a four-year, $48 million deal with the Packers.
Jones will join a revamped Minnesota offense that will also move forward without quarterback Kirk Cousins, who agreed to a four-year deal with the Atlanta Falcons. The team added free-agent QB Sam Darnold on Tuesday.
A 2020 Pro Bowler, Jones has averaged 5.0 yards per carry over 97 career games, rushing for 5,940 yards and scoring 63 total touchdowns (45 rushing, 18 receiving). He also has caught 272 passes for 2,076 yards.
NFL.com's Kevin Patra contends that, when healthy, the veteran remains one of the top running backs in the NFL. He's a dangerous rusher on the edge with with home-run ability. He's also an asset as a receiver. Jones racked up 1,100-plus scrimmage yards and seven-plus scrimmage TDs in four straight seasons from 2019-2022.
Hamstring issues in 2023 broke the streak, as Jones finished with just 656 rush yards, 233 receiving yards, and three total touchdowns in 11 games. But after he returned to full-time duty in Week 15, Jones was a force. From weeks 15 through the NFL playoffs, Jones had five straight games with 100-plus yards rushing. In Green Bay's playoff win over the Dallas Cowboys, he ran for 118 yards on 21 carries with three touchdowns.
That's the upside the Vikings, who recently cut Alexander Mattison after his one-season audition as RB1 fell short, are looking for this season.
Jones joins a running back room with Ty Chandler, Kene Nwangwu, Myles Gaskin, and DeWayne McBride. Cam Akers is also a restricted free agent.
Jones' ability as a dual-threat playmaker will be an enticing option in Kevin O'Connell's offense, and it's fair to assume he'll be the lead here. But as ESPN's Mike Clay wrote, "Jones is entering his age-29 season, so while I would expect him to 'start,' there's plenty of room for Chandler to play a significant role as part of a two-headed backfield."
Jones currently sits at RB35 on the Footballguys 2024 Draft Rankings. That's reasonable, given the change of circumstances and the Vikings question marks at quarterback. Don't be surprised if that ranking rises if we get positive developments under center or more clarity about Jones' role as the season draws nearer.
The Fantasy Football Fallout
Footbalguy Sam Wagman might have had the definitive take on Chandler via X:
Ty Chandler SZN
— Sam Wagman (@swagman95) March 12, 2024
February 29, 2024 - March 12, 2024 https://t.co/cxFlZ0BjlR
But, as Clay indicated in his take, there's still a role to be had here, even if it's not as robust as we hoped when Mattison was released. Chandler's Footballguys Ranking of RB51 puts him in the same territory as Philadelphia's Kenneth Gainwell, Carolina's Miles Sanders, and New England's Antonio Gibson. The upside of this entire group is limited by front-line players ahead of them. Still, they're all fantastic insurance policies for those investing in Saquon Barkley, Chuba Hubbard, and in Chandler's case, Jones.
Stock Watch
Risers
Fallers
Overview
One day after being released by the Green Bay Packers, Aaron Jones will sign a one-year, $7 million deal with the rival Minnesota Vikings. The Vikings have been looking to add to their running back room after releasing Alexander Mattison last week. Minnesota's running back corps is currently led by Ty Chandler, who showed promise down the stretch last season with 327 yards from scrimmage and two touchdowns over the Vikings' final four games. But Jones will be the leader of the Vikings committee and should provide an upgrade over Mattison.