Last March, the Minnesota Vikings sent over a pair of Day 3 draft picks to the San Francisco 49ers in exchange for 26-year-old running back Jordan Mason. Given Mason's physical running style, it was a deal that seemed to go along with some of the Vikings' other moves in the offseason to improve the team's physicality on both sides of the ball.
Minnesota's new running back got off to a solid start this season, especially after Aaron Jones was placed on injured reserve. In Mason's four starts this year, he averaged just under 17 touches per matchup, scored four touchdowns, and gained 5.4 yards per carry.
Despite his success, the Vikings have essentially switched him back to a reserve role since Jones returned to the field in Week 8, as his snaps and touches per contest have been significantly reduced. In three of Minnesota's last four games, Mason has touched the football six times or less, which is not what anyone expected after what he was able to do in Jones's absence.
Minnesota Vikings trade for Jordan Mason is starting to feel like a mistake
While Jones has performed well in his last three games, it's been a bit odd that the Vikings haven't had more of an even split in touches between him and Mason.
Some believed that when J.J. McCarthy returned to Minnesota's starting lineup in Week 9, the team would lean more on running the ball with Mason and Jones to ease some of the pressure off of their young quarterback.
But that hasn't been the case.
In each of the Vikings' last two games, the offense has run more pass plays than run plays. And this hasn't just been in the situations when Minnesota has been trailing and is quickly attempting to come back. At the half of both of the Vikings' last two contests, the team has called more pass plays than run plays in the first two quarters.
That doesn't seem like the best recipe to help McCarthy succeed, especially since he's been having a ton of trouble with his accuracy in Minnesota's last two games.
But back to Mason, because even when the Vikings have utilized their running backs in the last two weeks, Jones has been getting the majority of the touches (31 touches since Week 10 compared to just five for Mason).
Minnesota's offense has been one that has leaned more towards passing the football since Kevin O'Connell was hired as the team's head coach in 2022. But the rebuilding of the interior offensive line and the addition of Mason in the offseason made it seem like the Vikings could be heading into a 2025 campaign that would place a greater emphasis on running the ball.
However, that hasn't happened as O'Connell has just continued to stick to what he's comfortable with, which has resulted in his young quarterback passing more often than he probably should, and many wondering why Minnesota even bothered making a trade for Mason in the first place.