Green Bay Packers running back Aaron Jones is clearly tired of being called injury-prone.
Jones was injured as a rookie when he tore his MCL. He was injured in training camp with a hamstring issue. Mike McCarthy reportedly was limiting Jones‘ early action because he wanted him healthy for the stretch run.
Well, there is no stretch run now. There is no McCarthy either, at least not as coach of the Packers. So that’s out the window.
Yet Jones has never had 20 carries in a game at the NFL level. Odd for a guy who averages 5.7 yards per carry. Of course, not odd for McCarthy by any means.
Jones’ high this season was 17 carries against the Vikings.
Jones hasn’t barked for more carries. He says he’s wondered about it. What it might mean. He also feels he’s capable of it.
“I feel like that’s something I’m physically able to do,” Jones said. “I feel good on Mondays, Tuesdays. After the game, I might be a little sore, but I feel good and like, ‘Hey, I could’ve taken a couple more carries.’”
Jones has 642 yards and seven touchdowns on the season. He’d surely have at least a few more if he hadn’t missed the first two games because of a marijuana suspension. He’d also have a few more if McCarthy had utilized him more earlier in the season. In three of Jones’ first four games back he carried the ball fewer than 10 times.
It was aggravating to watch. Still, Jones has a legitimate shot at 1,000 yards. That wouldn’t be bad in 14 games. That’s how guys like Jim Taylor did it. In 14 games.
Jones, however, is just focused on finishing the season healthy and getting rid of the damn injury-prone label.
“I definitely think for any athlete who’s missed a couple games last year,” Jones said, “finishing the season strong and putting an end to all of that, ‘Oh, he’s injury prone,’ and all this and all that, that definitely will help.”
The Packers usually ride their backs late in the season when the weather turns foul. That would make a lot of sense this season. However, with Aaron Rodgers playing at perhaps an all-time low, teams have started to focus on stopping Jones first.
It will be interesting to see if Jones can remain effective and remain healthy with so much attention on him during these final four games.
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I think yds per carry is a more important statistic than total yards, esp. if it is normalized for total yards and carries per game. Then a RB rating could be derived to compare season perf. among RBs of earlier eras when fb was an outdoor sport on grass played in a manly fashion, in the elements, not a girly-man’s game of touch fb (except for QB who is not even allowed to be touched if he “gives hisself up”)?
I think it’s more important that a player performs over time.
Some stats i won’t be ever able to forget, this site wouldn’t let me. Eddie Lacy’s 5.1 YPC average. Ty Montgomery’s crowning 5.9 YPC average. Hundleys crowning 2015 129 preseason passer rating. Jeff Janis crowning metrics…..skipping over Randall and Rollins crowning rookie season, Fackrells crowning sack explosion……
You have to do it over the test of time, not a 71, or 77 carry season. Not a few games in pre-season. Not two 3 sack games. You get the picture.
You have to do it over time, like Rodgers. Ironically, even though Rodgers has proven himself 100 times over. If he has a season that you could realistically describe as still “above average” per NFL standards, then you should rip his ass apart, maybe even call him gay or something…..lol
So….we love to repeatedly crown these players who have short term flashes, but for the guy you have ridden for a decade to countless victory’s, being the ultimate playmaker, if he slips for a variety of reasons, not all his own fault. Then some of you can’t wait to stab him in the back, just like back in 2015.
Not me, i’ll ride with Rodgers.
The Packers haven’t had a 1,000 yard rusher since Eddie Lacey in 2014. Under 13 years of McCarthy GB has only produced a 1,000 yard rusher 5 times.