Aaron Jones Agrees to Deal With Vikings: Fantasy Football Impact & Takeaways (2024)

The surprise of the day on Monday was the Packers agreeing to a deal with former Raiders RB Josh Jacobs. Shortly after that deal was reported, news dropped that Green Bay was moving on from longtime RB Aaron Jones. Jones had immediate interest on the open market, and he has reportedly agreed to a deal with the Minnesota Vikings less than 24 hours later.

Let’s examine the immediate implications and fantasy impact of Jones agreeing to terms with the Vikings.

Aaron Jones to Sign With Minnesota Vikings

Aaron Jones will sign a one-year contract with the Minnesota Vikings worth $7 million, according to Dianna Russini of The Athletic.

Jones was released by the Packers on Monday after Green Bay agreed to terms with free-agent RB Josh Jacobs. The 29-year-old Jones has spent seven seasons with the Packers, racking up 5,940 rushing yards, 2,076 receiving yards and 63 touchdowns.

Jones is ticketed to start for the Vikings, who used the RB tandem of Alexander Mattison and Ty Chandler in 2023 and finished 29th in the league in rushing yardage. The Vikings figure to lean heavily on the running game considering the unsettled state of their QB position. Minnesota just signed six-year veteran Sam Darnold to a one-year deal, and the Vikings are expected to take a quarterback in next month’s NFL Draft.

Jones played only 11 regular-season games for the Packers in 2023, missing time with a hamstring injury and a sprained MCL. He was terrific for Green Bay down the stretch, closing out the regular season with three consecutive 100-yard rushing games, then rushing for more than 100 yards in each of the Packers’ two playoff games, including a 118-yard, three-TD performance in a win over the Cowboys.

aaron jones got a one-year deal worth $7M

…

dalvin cook also got a one-year deal worth $7M last year

— Andrew Erickson™ (@AndrewErickson_) March 12, 2024

Age and 2023 injuries might discourage some fantasy managers from rostering Jones in 2024, but he’s been a needle-mover in the fantasy sphere for years. His yearly finishes in fantasy points per game (half-point PPR) since 2018: RB16, RB4, RB6, RB13, RB11, RB27. Jones’ lackluster RB27 ranking in 2023 was skewed by a pair of early departures due to injury — he had just five carries in Week 4 and four carries in Week 11.

Jones will undoubtedly be Minnesota’s lead back this season as long as he’s healthy, but he’ll need a supporting RB cast, since he’s never been a true workhorse. Jones’ single-season high in carries was 236 in 2019, and he’s never had more than 213 carries in any other season. Ty Chandler is currently No. 2 on the Vikings’ RB depth chart.

In 2024 fantasy drafts, Jones should be regarded as a midrange RB2. The Vikings probably aren’t going to have a very prolific offense due to uncertainty at the QB position, but there’s little reason to worry about Jones’ performance level, particularly after his superb finish to the 2023 season. Jones has averaged at least 4.6 yards per carry in all seven of his NFL seasons. He’s also a fine pass catcher who’s averaged 3.2 receptions and 25.3 receiving yards per game over the last five regular seasons.

In dynasty formats, Jones is obviously less valuable since he’ll turn 30 in December. But for dynasty teams that expect to make a championship run in 2024, Jones can be a helpful chess piece. I have him ranked RB31 for dynasty.