The Minnesota Vikings were looking to improve their ground game during the 2025 offseason, and acquiring running back Jordan Mason brought the promise of an ideal backfield mate for an aging Aaron Jones.
Mason proved to be that ideal backfield mate for Jones. For a stretch of weeks after Jones returned from a four-game injury absence, he was the better back despite seeing a lot less work.
Mason is awful in pass protection, and that naturally puts a lid on what he can do as a pass catcher, since he's simply not worthy of being on the field in obvious passing situations.
Still, due to circumstances that were in and outside of their control, the Vikings did not maximize what he could do during his first season on the team.
Another data point shows Minnesota Vikings can get a lot more out of Jordan Mason
In a recent look at running back handcuffs for fantasy football this year, in "Tier A: One injury away from being on the cover of waiver wire articles", Fantasy Life's Ian Hartitz dropped a concise note that further proves how the Vikings failed to use Mason enough last season.
"Jordan Mason was quietly the RB6 in Next-Gen Stats' rushing yards OVER expected per carry and could find much touchdown success in a better edition of this Vikings offense."
Mason was also top-five in the league in rushing yards over expected per carry in 2024 when he played for the San Francisco 49ers. So being top-tier in that stat is nothing new for him.
The Vikings drafting a running back last month was a lead-pipe lock, and the arrival of Demond Claiborne undeniably alters the backfield equation.
But the rookie is a far greater immediate threat to Jones' workload than he is to Mason's, since Mason can still fit nicely in a complementary role to a more versatile back.
Mason scored six of the Vikings' 15 rushing touchdowns last season. While Kyler Murray is a greater overall running threat than J.J. McCarthy, he's also not built to vulture goal-line touchdowns like McCarthy is.
Not to mention the easy expectation Murray will provide at least average play under center this season, which will foster a higher volume of scoring opportunities.
Mason is a sneaky candidate to get double-digit rushing touchdowns this season and, even as Claiborne gets phased in, there's room for him to be a more consistent factor in the Vikings' run game.
If more evidence was needed to prove that last point, it's here now.
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