AaronJones Sr.

News: 4 days agoThe Vikings placed Jones (hamstring) on injured reserve Wednesday.

Spin: Jones will miss at least four games while recovering from his hamstring injury, making his earliest tentative return date Week 8 against the Chargers on Oct. 23, due to the timing of Minnesota's bye in Week 6. That positions Jordan Mason to take over the Vikings' backfield in a workhorse capacity, beginning Sunday versus the Bengals. Minnesota also has Zavier Scott available as backfield depth, and the team inked Cam Akers to the practice squad Wednesday.

ESPN Fantasy Projection: Jones re-signed with Minnesota after a successful 2024 campaign, in which he appeared in all 17 regular-season games and ranked top 10 among RBs in carries, targets, touches and yards. Jones, who played a career-high 64% of the offensive snaps, was effective as a rusher and receiver but had the league's worst touchdown luck (seven TDs, 12.8 expected), which limited him to a 20th-place finish in fantasy PPG. Scoring regression is a strong bet in 2025, but Jones is now 30 years old, working in a pass-first scheme and will defer work (perhaps substantial work) to newcomer Jordan Mason. Jones should be viewed as a flex option.