Green Bay Packers 2019 roster preview: Aaron Jones
What role will Aaron Jones have in the Green Bay Packers offense in 2019?
That’s one of the big questions for this offense ahead of the new season. Aaron Jones has proven he’s one of the most talented players on offense for the Green Bay Packers, but he wasn’t given enough carries to make a significant impact last year.
Will that change in a new offense led by new head coach Matt LaFleur?
2018 stats
Jones played 12 games, rushing 133 times for 728 yards and eight touchdowns, averaging a league-best 5.5 yards per carry.
2018 review
Talk about a frustrating season. Seemingly everyone in the world not named Mike McCarthy could see that Jones was the most efficient running back on the roster — and the numbers backed it up. But for some reason, Jones would get a few carries then come out of the game.
Jamaal Williams had 121 carries compared to Jones’ 133. Part of that is due to Jones missing four games, but it also shows that the carries were fairly evenly distributed. Ty Montgomery had 26 carries before he was traded to the Baltimore Ravens.
Despite improving his pass protection and as a receiver, Jones was only on the field for 35 percent of the Packers’ offensive snaps compared to Williams’ 48.6 percent, according to Pro Football Reference.
Odds of making roster: 100 percent
Jones will be key to the success of the Green Bay Packers’ offense, and he should be one of the first names in the starting lineup.
What to expect in 2019?
If Jones is given a greater share of the carries in 2019, expect this to be his best season yet. There’s absolutely no reason why he couldn’t have hit 1,000 yards last year, even missing four games. It all came down to a lack of opportunity in Mike McCarthy’s offense.
The expectation should be for LaFleur’s offense to be more committed to the run game, and therefore more likely to give Jones 15 or more carries in a lot of games.
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If Jones gets the opportunity and is able to stay healthy, this could be his first 1,000-yard season for the Packers.