Green Bay Packers in danger of losing Aaron Jones to AFC contender
By Josh Hill
Aaron Jones is a free agent, and it’s looking more and more like he won’t be playing in Green Bay next season.
It appears that Week 15 was the last time Packers fans will get to watch Aaron Jones do the Lambeau Leap.
Well, he could still do the Lambeau Leap, it’ll just likely happen with Jones wearing a different uniform. Free agency is just weeks away, and Jones is one of the top skill position players on the market looking for a big payday. After seasons in Green Bay, it’s looking more and more like Jones’ time in Green Bay is finished.
According to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald, there is mutual interest between the Dolphins and Jones. This adds to the mounting reports of teams rumored to be interested in bringing Jones in, a list including but not limited to the 49ers, Colts, Bears, and Jets.
That’s bad news for the Packers.
Packers Rumors: Can Green Bay afford to match Aaron Jones offers?
As Freddie Boston from Lombardi Ave pointed out, the Dolphins willingness to pay Jones what other top running backs in the league make could be the
"If a team like the Dolphins are willing to offer Jones a big deal, perhaps in the $15 million per year region which Alvin Kamara and Ezekiel Elliott make, we can almost forget any chance of the Packers being able to compete."
Green Bay is strapped for cash heading into the 2021 offseason, as the Packers are $11.45 million over the cap. For comparison, Miami has over $22 million in cap space to work with.
Before the Packers can even think about matching an offer from another team — not just the Dolphins — they’d need to clear that $11.45 million from the books, plus whatever they’d be offering Jones since that initial number only zeros the balance.
This isn’t a total shock to the Packers, however. Jamaal Williams is still under contract for another season and AJ Dillon was drafted specifically to counteract the possibility that Jones is lost in free agency.
Losing a top running back in the league is never a good thing, but the Packers afforded themselves a contingency plan in the event that they can’t afford to pay Jones.