Aaron Jones (running back)

Aaron LaRae Jones (born December 2, 1994) is an American football running back for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at UTEP and was drafted by the Packers in the fifth round of the 2017 NFL Draft.[1]

Aaron Jones
Jones with the Green Bay Packers in 2017
No. 33 – Green Bay Packers
Position:Running back
Personal information
Born: (1994-12-02) December 2, 1994
Savannah, Georgia
Height:5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Weight:208 lb (94 kg)
Career information
High school:Burges (El Paso, Texas)
College:UTEP
NFL Draft:2017 / Round: 5 / Pick: 182
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of 2020
Rushing yards:3,364
Rushing average:5.2
Rushing touchdowns:37
Receptions:131
Receiving yards:1,057
Receiving touchdowns:6
Player stats at NFL.com
Player stats at PFR

Early years

Jones was born in Savannah, Georgia to Vurgess and Alvin Jones Sr., two career non-commissioned officers in the US Army. As a child, Jones looked up to Emmitt Smith, Percy Harvin, and Tyrod Taylor.[2] He and his twin brother Alvin Jr., older brother Xavier, and sister Chelsirae moved around often living in Germany, Kentucky, Tennessee, Virginia, and near the Mexican border due to their parents' postings.[3]

Jones attended and played high school football for Burges High School in El Paso, Texas.[4] He had a three-star composite rating from 247Sports.com.[5] His father retired before his senior year and started a marketing company to jump-start the recruiting process for his sons.[3]

College career

Jones attended and played college football for the UTEP Miners from 2013 to 2016 under head coach Sean Kugler.[6]

As a freshman, Jones played in nine games. In his collegiate debut, against New Mexico, he had 11 carries for 127 yards and two rushing touchdowns.[7] On October 26, against Rice, he had a season-high 186 rushing yards.[8] Overall, he finished the 2013 season with 811 rushing yards, four rushing touchdowns, and four receptions for 14 yards.[9]

As a sophomore, Jones played in 12 games. He started the 2014 season off with three strong performances. In the season opener, he had 237 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns in a victory at New Mexico.[10] In the next game, a loss to Texas Tech, he had 144 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns.[11] One week later, against New Mexico State, he had 168 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns.[12] On November 15, against North Texas, he had 177 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns in the win.[13] On November 29, against Middle Tennessee State, he had 147 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown to go along with a 72-yard touchdown reception in the victory.[14] Overall, in the 2014 season, he finished with 1,321 rushing yards (then fourth in school history[15]), 11 rushing touchdowns, 30 receptions, 293 receiving yards, and three receiving touchdowns.[16]

As a junior, Jones played in only two games due to suffering an ankle injury early in the season.[17] On the year, he finished with 209 rushing yards, one rushing touchdown, 106 receiving yards, and one receiving touchdown.[18] 91 of those came on the longest rushing play in school history against Texas Tech.

As a senior, Jones played in 12 games. In his first game back from the ankle injury, he had 249 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns in a win over New Mexico State,[19] then the third-most in school history.[15] In his second game of the season, Jones had 123 rushing yards on 18 carries in a loss against the Texas Longhorns with the Miners' lone touchdown of the game coming from a 51-yard run by Jones.[20] On October 29, against Old Dominion, he threw a three-yard passing touchdown in the loss.[21] In the next game against Houston Baptist, he had 228 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns.[22] He followed that up with 229 rushing yards and two more rushing touchdowns in a loss at Florida Atlantic.[23] In his finale collegiate game, a win over North Texas, he had 301 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns,[24] second only to Fred Wendt's 326 yards in 1948 in school history.[15] Overall, he had eight carries of more than 40 yards[3] and finished his final collegiate season with 1,773 rushing yards, 17 rushing touchdowns, 28 receptions, 233 receiving yards, three receiving touchdowns, and one passing touchdown.[25]

This made Jones one of the most prolific rushers in UTEP Miners history and a top player. In terms of rushing yards, he had five of the school's top 12 games, and school-records of 17 games with 100+ yards rushing, and five with 200+ yards. He holds the record for most rushing yards in a career (4,114), season (1,773; also fifth his second year), and career yards per game (117.5) including the 2nd- and 6th-best seasons in school history (147.8 in 2016; 110.1 in 2014). He is second all-time with 33 rushing touchdowns, including the school's 3rd- and 7th-best seasons (17 in 2016; 11 in 2014). His 4,760 career all-purpose yards and 136.0 per game average are both second all-time, and included the school's fourth and eight-best seasons. He has three of the school's 10 longest rushing plays, including the record 91-yarder from his short junior season. His 240 career points scored is 4th all time, and 2nd among non-kickers.[15]

College statistics
Year Team Games Rushing Receiving
AttYardsAvgLongTDRecYardsAvgLongTD
2013UTEP 91558115.28144143.560
2014UTEP 122421,3215.57311302939.8723
2015UTEP 2322096.5911910611.8361
2016UTEP 122291,7737.78317282338.3423
Career356584,1146.39133716469.1727

Professional career
External video
Jones' NFL Combine workout
Jones gets drafted by Green Bay
Pre-draft measurables
HeightWeightArm lengthHand size40-yard dash10-yard split20-yard split20-yard shuttleThree-cone drillVertical jumpBroad jumpBench pressWonderlic
5 ft 9 1⁄2 in
(1.77 m)		 208 lb
(94 kg)		 32 1⁄2 in
(0.83 m)		 9 1⁄2 in
(0.24 m)		4.56 s1.51 s2.57 s4.20 s6.82 s37 1⁄2 in
(0.95 m)		10 ft 7 in
(3.23 m)		26 reps19[26]
All values are from NFL Combine[27][28]
Jones receiving a toss from Aaron Rodgers in 2018

Jones was drafted by the Green Bay Packers in the fifth round, 182nd overall, in the 2017 NFL Draft.[29] He was the 19th running back selected in that year's draft.[30][31] He was signed to a contract on May 5, 2017.[32]

2017 season

After injuries to Ty Montgomery and Jamaal Williams, Jones came into the Thursday Night Football game against the Chicago Bears in Week 4. In the game, he had 13 carries for 49 yards and his first career rushing touchdown in the 35–14 victory.[33] In Week 5 against the Dallas Cowboys, Jones tallied 19 carries for 125 yards. He also had one lone target, for a 9-yard gain. In the second quarter, Jones rushed up the middle for a seven-yard touchdown, which was the second touchdown of his career. In Week 7, against the New Orleans Saints, he had 17 carries for 131 yards and a touchdown.[34] Overall, he finished his rookie season with 448 rushing yards (second on the team to fellow rookie Jamaal Williams, ninth among NFL rookies), a team-leading four rushing touchdowns, nine receptions, and 22 receiving yards.[35]

2018 season

On July 3, 2018, Jones was suspended the first two games of the 2018 season for violating the NFL's Substance Abuse policy.[36] On September 23, his first game back from his suspension, Jones rushed six times for 42 yards in a 31–17 loss to the Washington Redskins.[37] The following week, in a 22–0 win over the Buffalo Bills, he had 11 rushes for 65 yards and a touchdown.[38] He took over the starting duties in Week 6, though he continued to share carries with Williams and Montgomery. By Week 9, he had enough rushes to qualify for the NFL leaderboards, and took over the top spot in yards-per-rush at 6.02.[39] On November 11, he had 15 carries for a career-high 145 yards and two rushing touchdowns in a 31–12 Week 10 victory over the Miami Dolphins. The following week, he caught his first NFL receiving touchdown and ran for another in a 24–27 loss to Seattle. In Week 12, he scored his fifth touchdown in three games en route to 93 total yards against the Minnesota Vikings.[40] He suffered a knee injury in Week 15 and was placed on injured reserve on December 18, 2018.[41][42] Overall, he finished the 2018 season with 728 rushing yards, eight rushing touchdowns, 26 receptions, 206 receiving yards, and one receiving touchdown.[43]

In his first two seasons, Jones' averaged 9 touches per game[3] and a league-leading 5.5 yards per carry.[44]

2019 season
Jones in a game against the Washington Redskins

In Week 2 against the Minnesota Vikings, Jones rushed 23 times for 116 yards and a touchdown as the Packers won 21–16.[45] In Week 3 against the Denver Broncos, Jones rushed 10 times for 19 yards and two touchdowns as the Packers won 27–16.[46] During Week 5 against the Dallas Cowboys, Jones finished with 107 rushing yards, 75 receiving yards, and four touchdowns as the Packers won 34–24, earning him NFC Offensive Player of the Week.[47][48] During Sunday Night Football against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 8, Jones finished with 13 carries for 67 rushing yards, seven catches for 159 receiving yards, and two receiving touchdowns as the Packers won 31–24.[49] He was named the NFC Offensive Player of the Week for his performance.[50] In Week 10 against the Carolina Panthers, Jones rushed 13 times for 93 yards and three touchdowns in the 24–16 win.[51] In Week 14 against the Washington Redskins, Jones rushed 16 times for 134 yards and a touchdown in the 20–15 win.[52] During a rematch with the Minnesota Vikings on Monday Night Football in Week 16, Jones highlighted a big play with a 56-yard touchdown run. Overall, he finished with 154 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 23 rushes[53] as the Packers won 23–10.[54] In Week 17 against the Detroit Lions, Jones rushed 25 times for 100 yards and caught two passes for 43 yards in the 23–20 win. During the game, Jones played a career-high 75 snaps[53] and surpassed 1,000 rushing yards for the first time in his career.[55] In his 285 touches in the 2019 season, Jones finished with totals of 1,084 rushing yards and 16 rushing touchdowns to go along with 49 receptions for 474 receiving yards and three receiving touchdowns.[56][53]

In the Divisional Round of the playoffs against the Seattle Seahawks, Jones rushed 21 times for 62 yards and two touchdowns during the 28–23 win.[57] In the NFC Championship Game against the San Francisco 49ers, Jones rushed 12 times for 56 yards and a touchdown and caught five passes for 27 yards and a touchdown during the 37–20 loss.[58]

2020 season

In Week 1 against the Minnesota Vikings, Jones rushed 16 times for 66 yards and his first rushing touchdown of the season during the 43–34 win.[59] In Week 2 against the Detroit Lions, Jones rushed 18 times for a career high 168 yards and two rushing touchdowns, one of which was a 75-yard touchdown, and caught four passes for 68 yards and a receiving touchdown during the 42–21 win.[60] In Week 4 against the Atlanta Falcons on Monday Night Football, Jones totaled 101 yards from scrimmage and a receiving touchdown during the 30–16 win.[61] In Week 13 against the Philadelphia Eagles, Jones rushed for 130 yards, including a 77-yard touchdown, during the 30–16 win. [62] In Week 15 against the Carolina Panthers, Jones recorded 158 yards from scrimmage and a rushing touchdown during the 24–16 win.[63] On December 21, 2020, he was selected for the 2021 Pro Bowl.[64]

In the Divisional Round of the playoffs against the Los Angeles Rams, Jones rushed for 99 yards and a touchdown during the 32–18 win.[65] In the NFC Championship against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Jones rushed for 27 yards before exiting the game due to an injury during the 31–26 loss.[66]

NFL career statistics
Legend
Led the league
Bold Career high

Regular season
Year Team Games Rushing Receiving Fumbles
GPGSAttYdsAvgLngTDRecYdsAvgLngTDFumLost
2017GB 124814885.546T49222.49000
2018GB 1281337285.5678262067.924T111
2019GB 16162361,0844.656T16494749.767T332
2020GB 14142011,1045.577T9473557.630220
Career54426513,3645.277T371311,0578.167T663
Source: NFL.com

Postseason
Year Team Games Rushing Receiving Fumbles
GPGSAttYdsAvgLngTDRecYdsAvgLngTDFumLost
2019GB 22331183.62336315.29100
2020 GB 1 1 14 99 7.1 60 1 1 14 14.0 14 0 0 0
Career33472174.66047456.414100
Source: pro-football-reference.com

Personal life

In May 2018, Jones graduated from UTEP.[3]

On November 20, 2017, Jones was cited for a traffic stop, an incident that occurred on October 1. The day the incident occurred, Jones was speeding at 79 MPH at a 55 MPH speed limit, and had possession of marijuana. Jones was arrested and charged with operating with a restricted controlled substance, operating without a valid license, and speeding.[67] Jones pleaded no contest to the charges and was fined for court costs and had his license suspended for six months.[68]

References
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  2. Packers’ Aaron Jones on beating odds despite being overlooked
  3. Aaron Jones is finally free – and ready for the playoffs
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