There were many players who helped the Minnesota Vikings improve to 5-0 this season with a 23-13 win over the New Orleans Saints on Sunday afternoon. But one of the key reasons was the performance of veteran running back Aaron Jones.
Jones turned back the clock on Sunday as the 32-year-old matched a career-high with 25 carries and ran for 113 yards and a touchdown with three catches for four yards. While he aggravated a knee injury in the first quarter, he returned with a brace to finish the game and was the only Vikings running back to record a carry in the win.
This is not what fans expected when Jones returned for another season in Minnesota, but it’s what the Vikings have needed after Jordan Mason went on injured reserve with a thumb fracture.
While Mason is expected to return after the bye for a Week 7 matchup with the Indianapolis Colts, Jones did his job and showed why the Vikings brought him back after he was on the verge of being released.
Aaron Jones is proving the Vikings were right to bring him back
The Vikings brought in Jones ahead of the 2024 season to add a boost to their running game.
Minnesota dragged through the 2023 season with Alexander Mattison and Ty Chandler starring in the backfield, but Jones brought a productive track record from his time with the Green Bay Packers and responded with a career-high 1,138 yards and five touchdowns.
While those numbers were great, Jones wore down as the season went along. But it didn’t stop the Vikings from giving him a two-year, $20 million contract to return.
The idea was that pairing him with Mason, who was acquired in a trade with the San Francisco 49ers, would reduce his workload and increase his effectiveness. But the approach didn’t work, as Jones battled injuries and ran for 548 yards and two touchdowns over 12 games.
With another year left on his contract, Jones was rumored to be a salary cap casualty in March. But he agreed to a one-year, $5 million deal to return.
The decision was puzzling as the Vikings needed more explosiveness out of the running game and did everything from adding offensive line coach Keith Carter and assistant head coach Frank Smith to revamp their scheme and even took speedy running back Demond Claiborne in the sixth round of April’s draft.
But Jones’s leadership was a key reason why he returned.
That’s why his performance over the past four weeks has been impressive. While Jones isn’t a burner, he can be a consistent performer, entering Sunday with a 48.6 percent success rate.
With Claiborne still needing to refine his pass protection and overall game, Jones also had to shoulder the load and did so with 23 carries for 105 yards in a Week 2 win over the Chicago Bears.
The workload continued with 85 carries over the past four weeks, and while it hasn’t produced highlight-worthy plays on the ground, his grittiness has played a key role and grabbed the attention of Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell after the game.
“What a warrior [he’s been] over these last few weeks. Aaron would hate for me to say this, but his ability to be a warrior on game day, find a way to make it to the next one, and then just be able to be leaned on the way he is.
He is an inspiration to this group. But his wingman is coming back. Hopefully, he’ll make it back after the bye, and we’ll move forward.”
Aaron Jones’s impact has gone far beyond the Vikings’ running game
Jones’s heavy workload is unlikely to continue after the bye, but that might be an opportunity to rest up for when the Vikings return.
After running for 758 yards and six touchdowns with a 56.0 percent success rate in his first year in Minnesota, giving Mason more carries would be ideal and would help the Vikings continue their newfound efficiency on the ground.
But even if Vikings fans see less of Jones, the team's locker room values him more than ever. Getting called upon in the wake of Mason’s injury is one thing. But taking his largest workload since 2019 and doing so through pain is another way for players to look up to him.
For a running game that has struggled to find itself under O’Connell, having Jones perform, as he did on Sunday is a big lift. But for a player who is one of the central figures on the team, it’s something that can provide a jolt throughout the team as it heads into the bye.
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