In his annual season-ending press conference on Feb. 1, Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst said he “absolutely” expected running back Aaron Jones to return for the 2024 season.
On Monday, about five weeks later, the Packers released Jones.
How did Green Bay go from point A to point B with one of the franchise’s best running backs ever and a beloved member of the organization who finished the season on a torrid pace? A source with knowledge of the situation told the following to Matt Schneidman:
Entering the final year of Jones’ deal in 2024 — Jones signed a four-year, $48 million extension in March 2021 to prevent him from reaching free agency — the Packers wanted him to take almost a 50-percent pay cut, if not more. Negotiations between the Packers and agent Drew Rosenhaus to lower Jones’ number started before the NFL Scouting Combine but didn’t make much progress over the following two weeks. The week after the combine, the two sides got slightly closer but were still far apart late in the week. The Packers presented their final offer to Jones’ camp, which they declined last Friday.
THANK YOU GREEN BAY. 💚💛
Together we have created and left a lasting impact on the Green Bay area and the community. It has been an honor to give back to the children and families that call Green Bay home – we will never forget you!@Showtyme_33 | #AaronJones #NFL pic.twitter.com/BaiyaxIkz3
— A&A All The Way Foundation (@AAAllTheWayFdn) March 11, 2024
As is common practice, the Packers rescinded their final offer after Jones’ camp declined it. They notified Jones that they were moving on since they didn’t want to shift their focus to another running back and have to turn Jones away if he accepted the final offer.
The Vikings have shown interest in Jones, who is now free to sign with any team, sources tell The Athletic’s Dianna Russini.
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Jones, who turned 29 in December, took a $5 million pay cut last year, but his camp was unwilling to match the pay cut the Packers wanted this time.
Jones still showed last season he could be elite when healthy, running for 584 yards at 5.7 yards per carry over the final five games of Green Bay’s season in the regular season and playoffs. That stretch included a three-touchdown game against the Cowboys at AT&T Stadium in a wild-card round upset. Despite such an impressive finish to his most physically grueling season yet, the 2017 fifth-round pick will turn 30 next season and likely was entering his final year as a Packer, even if the team and Jones were able to reach terms on a reworked contract.
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In 2023, Jones endured the most injury-riddled season of his career, playing his fewest games (11) in a single season in his seven years with the Packers. He pulled his hamstring at the end of a 35-yard touchdown catch-and-run in Week 1 after amassing 127 total yards and two touchdowns on 11 touches in two and a half quarters of a blowout win over the Bears. After an early season setback with his hamstring, Jones didn’t return to full health until around midseason. He then sprained his MCL in Week 11 against the Chargers — he initially thought he tore his ACL — and missed another three games before his resurgent final stretch of the season.
The Packers released Jones on Monday and agreed to terms with former Raiders running back Josh Jacobs, a source briefed on the matter told The Athletic’s Tashan Reed. Jacobs, who is more than three years younger than Jones and turned 26 in February, is coming off an unproductive season marred by ineffective offensive line play and his own health issues. However, he was a first-team All-Pro selection in 2022 after leading the league in rushing yards and scoring 12 touchdowns on the ground.
GO DEEPER
How Josh Jacobs fits as the Packers' new No. 1 running back
In his five seasons in the league since the Raiders selected him with pick No. 24 in 2019, Jacobs has run for 5,545 yards and 46 touchdowns, an average of 1,109 yards and about nine touchdowns on the ground per season. Jacobs made the Pro Football Writers of America All-Rookie team in 2019 before making the Pro Bowl in 2020 and 2022 and being named a first-team All-Pro selection in 2022. Jacobs has also averaged almost 40 catches and 290 receiving yards per season.
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In addition to releasing Jones and agreeing to terms with Jacobs, the Packers released longtime left tackle David Bakhtiari on Monday and agreed to a four-year, $68 million contract with former Giants safety Xavier McKinney, the consensus top player available at Green Bay’s biggest position of need, according to a source with knowledge of the deal.
(Photo: Ryan Kang / Getty Images)