Vikings Fans Will Fall In Love with the New Guy, Says HC
The Minnesota Vikings have undergone a transformation in the 2024 offseason. Established veterans Kirk Cousins and Danielle Hunter departed, and with them, important role players K.J. Osborn, Alexander Mattison, and Jordan Hicks. However, the front office made sure to acquire a bunch of intriguing players to fill those voids.
Vikings Fans Will Fall In Love with the New Guy, Says HC
The most exciting additions, of course, arrived in the draft when Kwesi Adofo-Mensah traded up twice on draft day to select quarterback J.J. McCarthy and pass rusher Dallas Turner. The two could ultimately grow into replacing Pro Bowlers Cousins and Hunter.
Undoubtedly, the most thrilling signing on offense is running back Aaron Jones. After wearing the green rival’s uniform for seven seasons, he has switched sides and will suit up in purple in 2024. Jones’ task isn’t easy, as he is asked to fix the horrendous rushing attack that barely instilled fear into opponents.
Head coach Kevin O’Connell joined KFAN’s Dan Barreiro after Wednesday’s practice and was asked if he wanted to commit more to the ground game in the upcoming season after barely running the ball in the past two years. He started to rave about his new runner.
We’re going to run the football, and we want to establish it. I have a ton of confidence in Ty Chandler. I have every bit of the feelings towards Aaron Jones that you do; that’s why he’s here. I did offer to go and pick him up in Green Bay and help him get his stuff here as fast as possible when we heard it would be possible. Aaron Jones, Vikings fans, Skol Nation, everyone’s going to fall in love with this guy. Our building has already. He’s unique, he’s dynamic, and he could not be more excited to be part of our team and what it means to be part of this team.
Kevin O’Connell
The experience with Mattison as the team’s leading rusher failed dramatically, and the hope is that Jones can be enough of an upgrade over him to fix some of the woes. Minnesota ranked 27th in rush DVOA, 25th in EPA/run, 29th in rushing yards and yards per attempt, and dead last in rushing touchdowns.
That kind of unbalanced offense is disastrous with either struggling veteran Sam Darnold or rookie J.J. McCarthy under center.
Jones has been one of the best running backs throughout his career. In 97 games, he rushed for 5,940 yards, averaging an excellent 5.0 yards per carry. He also reached the endzone 45 times. In addition to that, he is a great threat as a receiver out of the backfield, as shown by his over 2,000 receiving yards and 18 scores through the air.
Injuries slowed him down last season, but he still finished strong with five straight 100-yard rushing games, which makes it more feasible that he hasn’t fallen off a cliff despite closing in on 30 years of age.
O’Connell mentioned that Chandler will enter the lineup to give him a breather whenever necessary after his solid late-season emergence, similar to Jones’ teammates in Green Bay over the years.
Many new faces have arrived in Minnesota this offseason, but few are as critical for the team’s success as the new running back. If the last two seasons under O’Connell are any indication, he should be considered unlikely to play in the preseason. His first regular season game in purple is scheduled to be on September 8 against the New York Giants.
Editor’s Note: Information from FTN Fantasy and Pro Football Reference helped with this article.
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