Getty Running back Aaron Jones, formerly of the Green Bay Packers.
The Green Bay Packers cut running back Aaron Jones Monday after seven years in green and gold, and just hours later one of the team’s oldest and fiercest rivals came knocking.
The Minnesota Vikings are quite familiar with Jones’ work, which is perhaps why they were the first suitors for his services, per a report from Cheesehead TV on March 11.
Per @mattschneidman and @DMrussini: The #Packers asked Aaron Jones for a 50% pay cut. When him and his team declined, they decided to move on.
NOW: The first named team to show interest in the now former Packers RB? The Minnesota Vikings.
“Per @mattschneidman and @DMrussini: The #Packers asked Aaron Jones for a 50% pay cut. When him and his team declined, they decided to move on,” Cheesehead TV posted to X. “NOW: The first team named to show interest in the now former Packers RB? The Minnesota Vikings.”
Minnesota cut Alexander Mattison ahead of free agency, which has left the team with Ty Chandler as the presumed top option in its running back room. Jones, now 29 years old, would offer an immediate upgrade.
Jones’ presence in the Vikings locker room next season may also offer some reassurance and stability to the organization, as six-year starting quarterback Kirk Cousins left Minnesota Monday to join the Atlanta Falcons in the NFC South.
Packers Willing to Pay Josh Jacobs What They Wanted to Take Away From Aaron Jones
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Helping the Vikings steady a rocking ship is the opposite of an ideal consequence to cutting Jones, but the money Green Bay saved by doing so ultimately proved the most important factor. The Packers will clear nearly $12 million in salary cap space by designating Jones a post-June 1 release. That figure will otherwise be approximately $5.2 million.
The move helped pave the way for Green Bay to ink former Las Vegas Raiders running back and 2022 first-team All-Pro Josh Jacobs to a four-year contract worth $48 million. Of course, the ideal scenario would have been keeping Jones and signing Jacobs to create arguably the best backfield duo in football.
However, Jones took a $5 million pay cut in 2023 to remain a member of the Packers after signing a four-year, $48 million deal of his own ahead of the 2021 campaign. As such, Green Bay asking him to cut his salary in half in 2024 proved too much for the seven-year veteran running back.
Two Playoff Teams Also Linked to Interest in Former Packers RB Aaron Jones
GettyGreen Bay Packers running back Aaron Jones.
While the Vikings were the first to Jones’ free agency party, they likely won’t be the last.
Jason La Canfora of the Washington Post predicted on March 7 that two perennial playoff contenders would be likely suitors for Jones if he ended up a cap casualty in Green Bay, which happened Monday.
“If Jones is cut, I would expect him to get immediate calls from Baltimore and Dallas, among others,” La Canfora wrote.
Former Cowboys running back Tony Pollard signed with the Tennessee Titans Monday, which creates an opening for Jones on his hometown team. Meanwhile, Gus Edwards left Baltimore for the Los Angeles Chargers and fellow Ravens running back J.K. Dobbins is a free agent.