Matt LaFleur shares big praise for Aaron Jones, and he knows it's too soon
It's absolutely understandable why the Green Bay Packers moved on from Aaron Jones to sign Josh Jacobs. Whether you agree with the move or not, the reasoning of going with a younger and healthier running back makes sense. However, it was certainly a painful move from a fan perspective, because Jones embodied the spirit of […]
It's absolutely understandable why the Green Bay Packers moved on from Aaron Jones to sign Josh Jacobs. Whether you agree with the move or not, the reasoning of going with a younger and healthier running back makes sense. However, it was certainly a painful move from a fan perspective, because Jones embodied the spirit of the team so well and had been a favorite for years.
Asked by Kevin Clark on podcast "This is Football" about which player was the most "bad***" he had coached, LaFleur knew it was too early, but he had no other answer.
"It might be too soon, but Aaron Jones is a bad*** football player," LaFleur said. "For a guy that's 190 pounds, and just the beating that the runners take in general. I mean, it's like a car crash every time they get tackled."
LaFleur remembered last year's game against the Los Angeles Chargers, when Jones hurt his knee. Looking at the play, it seemed like a worse injury. In the end, the running back suffered an MCL sprain and was able to return at a high level for the final stretch of the season.
"Honestly, just his ability to come back. I thought he shredded his knee earlier this year, when we were playing the Chargers," LaFleur added. "I still don't know how he didn't get severely injured on that play. His ability to come back later in the year and what he was able to do, I would say that was pretty bad***."
Decision
The Packers have a divided structure, and general manager Brian Gutekunst has full control over the 53-man roster. Decisions are obviously shared through the football structure, but LaFleur publicly prefers to distance himself from that. Last week, for example, the head coach affirmed he didn't know the Packers were going to move on from Jones.
"It kind of caught me off guard, to be honest with you," LaFleur said. "There were some other things in play, obviously with Aaron Jones, and I didn't quite know how everything was going to go. It just happened really fast on that Monday."
Aaron Jones was a fifth-round pick in 2017, but he only became a full-time starter and a real difference-maker starting in 2019, when Matt LaFleur took over as a head coach. Released by the Packers, Jones signed a one-year contract with the rival Minnesota Vikings, which means he will face the Packers twice this upcoming season.
Three reasons behind the Packers’ decision to move on from Aaron Jones to sign Josh Jacobs
Green Bay released Jones after seven seasons
