Vikings Snag Some (Mostly) Good News for Star Player
RB1 Aaron Jones needed to miss most of the Week 5 Jets game. Not coincidentally, the offense struggled to get off the ground.
Thankfully, things don’t appear to be too serious for the Vikings’ top runner. Kevin O’Connell spoke with the Minnesota media earlier in the day and offered the update. Per the head coach, Jones has “avoided a long-term injury” but was described as being “week-to-week.” The status for the Lions in Week 7 is uncertain as of right now.
Vikings Snag Good News for Aaron Jones
The early word was one of optimism.
Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk thinks that the RB1 could be ready after the bye: “Initial word is that, by the time the Vikings return to action after their Week 6 bye, Jones should be good to go.” The Florio talk gets corroborated by Ian Rapoport of The NFL Network, who revealed that there would be an MRI while nevertheless striking an optimistic tone. Per Rapoport, it “doesn’t seem like a major injury.”
The word from Coach O’Connell mostly confirmed the optimistic outlook.
Something to keep in mind is that the Vikings tend to be cautious when it comes to player injuries. If there’s an internal belief that the veteran RB1 is less than 100%, then the Vikings will very likely lean toward sitting their top runner.
Plus, the Week 8 game is a quick turnaround given that Minnesota is playing the Rams on Thursday Night Football. So, in theory, Minnesota could allow Jones to rest through the bye and then in Week 7 and Week 8 before trying to have him at 100% — minus the normal wear and tear, bumps and bruises — for the final half of the season.
Aaron Jones has rushed the ball 71 times for 350 yards and 1 touchdown. He also has 17 catches for 167 yards and 1 touchdown. He is, in short, the best option on the ground and the third-best option in the passing game.
Now, just because things are looking good with Jones, it doesn’t mean that there isn’t a problem to solve in Minnesota. The team needs to get better at running the ball when Jones isn’t on the field.
Consider the work that Ty Chandler has done so far:
- Week 1: 8 carries, 17 yards (2.13 average)
- Week 2: 10 carries, 82 yards (8.2 average)
- Week 3: 7 carries, 13 yards (1.86 average)
- Week 4: 3 carries, 5 yards (1.67 average)
- Week 5: 14 carries, 30 yards (2.14 average)
Add the aforementioned carries and yards together for the 2024 season. The end result will be 42 carries for 147 scoreless yards and a 3.5 yards-per-carry average. Removing that Week 2 effort, though, would sink that average down to a dismally-low level.
The issue, then, is going to involve finding some way of churning out yards on the ground when Jones isn’t around. Credit to the former Packer for proving to be so excellent but the team needs to be able to produce even without him being on the field. After all, we’re talking about an older runner who missed time last season due to injury.
As hard as it may be to believe, the Vikings haven’t yet been operating at full strength on offense. T.J. Hockenson still hasn’t come back yet. Even worse, Jordan Addison missed some games and even Justin Jefferson has missed a bit of time internal to games.
Giving Sam Darnold his full array of weapons at the same time — Jefferson, Addison, Hockenson, and Jones — will very likely lead to a mighty dangerous crew.
The Vikings step into their bye with the NFL’s 6th-best offense by averaging 27.8 points per game.
Editor’s Note: Information from Pro Football Reference helped with this piece.
K. Joudry is the Senior Editor for Vikings Territory and PurplePTSD. He has been covering the Vikings full time since the summer of 2021. He can be found on Twitter, as a co-host for Notes from the North, and as the proprietor at The Vikings Gazette, a humble Vikings Substack.
