The Vikings placed Jones (hamstring) on injured reserve Wednesday.
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.
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Vikings' Aaron Jones: IR bound, out at least four games
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The Vikings plan to place Jones (hamstring) on injured reserve Tuesday, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports.
Head coach Kevin O'Connell had already indicated that Jones was on track to sit out Sunday's game against the Bengals after straining his hamstring in the Week 2 loss to the Falcons, but the veteran running back will now have to miss at least four games while he heads to IR. Minnesota added Cam Akers to its practice squad Tuesday to bolster its backfield depth, but Jordan Mason looks set to operate as the Vikings' clear No. 1 running back in Jones' absence. Over the first two games of the season, Jones had been part of a timeshare with Mason, playing fewer than half the offensive snaps in both contests while carrying 13 times for 46 yards and adding three catches for 44 yards and a touchdown on four targets.
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Vikings' Aaron Jones: May not be available Week 3
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Coach Kevin O'Connell said Monday that Jones (hamstring) is still being evaluated, but the Vikings may be without the running back Sunday versus the Bengals, Alec Lewis of The Athletic reports.
Jones made an early exit from Sunday's 22-6 loss to the Falcons due to a hamstring injury, tallying 23 yards on five carries and failing to haul in his only target on 20 offensive snaps. Jordan Mason had nine carries for 30 yards and two catches (on three targets) for eight yards on 28 plays, taking over as the lead back late. If Jones ends up sitting out Week 3, Mason likely would take on the bulk of Minnesota's backfield reps, as Zavier Scott -- who has yet to take a snap on offense in an NFL game -- is the only other RB currently on the 53-man roster.
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Vikings' Aaron Jones: Hurts hamstring on SNF
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Jones (hamstring) is questionable to return to Sunday's game against the Falcons, Kevin Seifert of ESPN.com reports.
Jones was having a quiet game prior to his fourth-quarter injury, with just five carries for 23 yards and no catches on one target. Jordan Mason will handle the bulk of the backfield workload for the Vikings if Jones remains out.
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Vikings' Aaron Jones: Flashes as receiver in win
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Jones rushed eight times for 23 yards and brought in all three targets for 44 yards and a touchdown in the Vikings' 27-24 win over the Bears on Monday night.
Jones saw new backfield mate Jordan Mason outpace him by seven carries and 45 rushing yards, but the former made a significant impact as a receiver. Jones shared the team lead in receiving yards with Justin Jefferson, and he also recorded a nifty 27-yard touchdown grab down the right side of the field with just under 10 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. It remains to be seen if Monday night's ground-attack pecking order will have staying power, but it's conceivable the 30-year-old Jones, who logged a career-high 255 carries over 17 regular-season games in 2024 and came into the season with 1,432 career rush attempts, is slotted into more of a complementary role on the ground behind the younger Mason on the majority of weeks while still retaining a solid pass-catching role.
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Vikings' Aaron Jones: RBs to Start
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I'm worried about Jones being a consistent No. 2 Fantasy running back for the season, and we'll see how he splits the workload in Week 1 with Jordan Mason. But I'll start Jones with confidence in this matchup against the Bears. He owns Chicago. In his past 12 meetings with the Bears going back to 2019, Jones has averaged 18.3 PPR points per game against Chicago, including both games last season with the Vikings. I'll take the over on Jones' rushing yards prop on FanDuel, which is 49.5. He ran for at least 86 yards in each game against the Bears last season.
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Vikings' Aaron Jones: May lose goal-line work to Mason
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Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell has hinted at reducing Jones' workload and using trade acquisition Jordan Mason as part of a "1A/1B backfield structure," ESPN.com's Kevin Seifert reports.
O'Connell specifically mentioned goal-line and short-yardage situations as areas where Mason can help, noting that the Vikings "left a lot to be desired" in those situations last year. Jones returns as the starter after signing a two-year, $20 million contract, but it sounds like he's a long shot to match last season's career highs for snaps (700), rush attempts (255) and touches (306). The only disappointment in 2024 was scoring three times on 24 carries inside the 10-yard line, with just seven total TDs (five rushing) despite playing all 17 games and recording 1,546 yards from scrimmage (his most since 2019) at rates of 4.5 yards per carry and 8.0 per catch. While ceding goal-line carries is never a good thing for fantasy value, Mason's physical presence could help the 30-year-old Jones stay healthy and maintain his strong per-touch yardage production.
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Vikings' Aaron Jones: Clear for Monday's game
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Jones (quadriceps) doesn't have a designation for Monday's wild-card game against the Rams.
Jones is tending to a quad injury that has lingered since he exited the Vikings' Week 17 win against the Packers in the second half. He was able to suit up this past Sunday at Detroit and turned 15 touches into 75 yards from scrimmage. With an illness going around the RB room -- Ty Chandler showed up on Friday's report but doesn't have a designation for Monday's contest, while Cam Akers is listed as questionable due to an ailment -- Jones could be a true workhorse in Minnesota's playoff opener if either or both of his position mates are compromised. As for Jones, the oft-injured back played a full slate for the third time in his eight-year career in 2024, reeling off 1,546 yards from scrimmage and seven total TDs on 306 touches in 17 regular-season contests.
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Vikings' Aaron Jones: Remains limited in practice
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Jones (quadriceps) was a limited practice participant Friday.
Jones played through the same injury during last week's loss to the Lions, taking 15 touches for 75 yards while playing 62 percent of snaps on offense. He'll likely play again Monday against the Rams in Glendale Arizona, having managed limited practice participation Thursday and Friday.
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Vikings' Aaron Jones: Goes for 75 yards in Week 18
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Jones rushed 10 times for 45 yards while catching five of six targets for 30 receiving yards in Sunday's 31-9 loss to the Lions.
Jones turned in moderate fantasy numbers despite his team wearing this one on the chin. The long-time Packer was able to set a new career high in rushing yards (1,138) in his first year playing with the Vikings. The 29-year-old also produced one of his better receiving seasons after recording 51 receptions and 423 yards in 17 starts with his new club. Jones will draw a favorable matchup in the wild-card round of the playoffs when the Vikings face the Rams' 22nd-ranked rush defense next Monday.
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Vikings' Aaron Jones: Dealing with quad issue
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Jones (quadriceps) recorded 12 rushes for 47 yards in Sunday's 27-25 win over the Packers. He added four receptions on five targets for an additional 30 yards.
Despite playing with a lead for the entire game, the Vikings remained aggressive on offense by taking to the air 43 times. That was enough to mute Jones' volume to some degree, an issue compounded by the fact that he didn't play at all in the fourth quarter due to a quad injury he suffered earlier in the game, per Kevin Seifert of ESPN.com. Jones' status will be important to monitor ahead of a Week 18 showdown with the Lions that will decide the NFC North as well as the top seed in the NFC.
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Vikings' Aaron Jones: Efficient rushing effort in win
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Jones rushed 13 times for 73 yards and a touchdown and brought in both targets for 11 yards in the Vikings' 42-21 win over the Falcons on Sunday.
A week after having issues with ball security, Jones turned in a clean performance that also featured his third performance of better than 70 rushing yards in the last five contests. Jones also recorded his second rushing touchdown in the last three games on a 15-yard run with 3:38 remaining to cap off the runaway win. The veteran back heads into a Week 15 home matchup against the Bears on Monday night, Dec. 16 now just 117 rushing yards away from the fourth 1,000-yard campaign of his career.
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Vikings' Aaron Jones: Tops 100 yards on ground
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Jones rushed the ball 22 times for 106 yards and a touchdown in Sunday's 30-27 overtime win over the Bears. He added three receptions on four targets for 23 yards.
Jones returned to full practices for the first time since suffering an injury to his ribs in Week 10, and he bounced back from a poor Week 11 effort. He accounted for two of Minnesota's longest plays from scrimmage with rushes of 41 and 13 yards, with the former marking his most explosive run of the campaign. That led to Jones topping 100 rushing yards for the second time this season. His two-yard touchdown plunge late in the third quarter also marked his first trip to the end zone since Week 7. Jones' return to health also minimized Cam Akers' role in the offense, making Jones a reliable fantasy back moving forward.
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Vikings' Aaron Jones: Tough sledding Sunday
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Jones took 15 carries for 39 yards while catching his only target for four yards in Sunday's 23-13 win over the Titans.
Neither team could move the ball on the ground Sunday, resulting in rushing averages of 2.5 yards for Minnesota and 1.7 yards for Tennessee. Jones actually finished as the game's leading rusher despite his paltry output. Cam Akers (10-25-0) continues to cut into the starter's touches, even vulturing a receiving touchdown in this contest. Jones is the superior talent and should remain the preferred fantasy option out of the Vikings' backfield heading into next Sunday's matchup against the Bears.
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Vikings' Aaron Jones: Needs cart to go to locker room
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Jones (chest) was carted to the locker room early in the fourth quarter of Sunday's game at Jacksonville, Ben Goessling of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.
Officially, Jones is questionable to return due to a chest injury, per Kevin Seifert of ESPN.com. Prior to his exit, Jones remained on the turf as trainers tended to him and then visited the medical tent before trying to jog on the sideline. If he doesn't reenter the contest, he'll end Week 10 with 13 carries for 71 yards and two catches (on three targets) for 13 yards. Cam Akers likely will take on a large share of the Vikings backfield for as long as Jones is out, but Ty Chandler also is on hand for RB reps.
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Vikings' Aaron Jones: Needs 25 touches to reach 82 yards
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Jones rushed 21 times for 64 yards and caught all four of his targets for 18 yards in Sunday's 21-13 win over the Colts.
Jones struggled to the tune of a 3.0 per-carry average without scoring a touchdown in Sunday's win. All of Minnesota's scoring came via the passing game, while the team's leading rusher struggled to gain traction against a tough Indianapolis front. Jones has scored just three touchdowns through eight starts with Minnesota, but he has produced 810 yards from scrimmage to help offset the lack of scoring. The veteran tailback could be in line for a healthy projection against the lowly Jaguars next Sunday.
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Vikings' Aaron Jones: Garners 95 total yards in loss
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Jones rushed 19 times for 58 yards and secured both targets for 37 yards in the Vikings' 30-20 loss to the Rams on Thursday night.
Jones found running room at a premium against a Rams defense that had experienced its share of struggles up this point in the season, but he did finish tied for second in receptions and as the runner-up in receiving yards as well. The veteran back had dealt with a hamstring injury early in the week but went into the contest without a designation, and he equaled his second-highest carry total of the campaign. Jones now has over 35 receiving yards in four of seven games as well, and he'll draw a favorable matchup against the Colts in a Week 9 home clash on Sunday night, Nov. 3.
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Vikings' Aaron Jones: Suiting up Sunday
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Jones (hamstring) is active for Sunday's game against the Lions.
The 5-0 Vikings had a few question marks coming out of a Week 6 bye, chief among them the status of Jones, who sat out the final three quarters of a Week 5 win against the Jets in London due to what was termed a hip injury at the time. The team's first Week 7 practice report instead revealed it to be a hamstring issue, and he managed limited sessions Thursday and Friday before Minnesota listed him as questionable. On Saturday evening, Ben Goessling of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported that Jones was expected to play Sunday, barring a setback, and he clearly feels well enough to go. There's a chance Jones cedes some work to backup Ty Chandler, but the former nonetheless has three outings with 100-plus total yards in five opportunities this season, making him more than worthy of fantasy consideration.
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Vikings' Aaron Jones: Officially limited Thursday
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Jones (hamstring) practiced in a limited fashion Thursday.
What initially was believed to be a hip injury that forced him out of the Vikings' last game Week 5 against the Jets was clarified to be a hamstring issue Wednesday, keeping him sidelined from the first session of Week 7 prep. Friday's practice report may provide some clarity on Jones' status heading into the weekend, but he appears destined to earn a designation ahead of Sunday's showdown with the Lions. If Jones is inhibited or out this weekend, Ty Chandler would be Minnesota's lead back, with Myles Gaskin and Cam Akers on hand for any RB reps that linger.
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Vikings' Aaron Jones: Aiming for Thursday practice return
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Jones (hip) said Wednesday that he hopes to practice Thursday, Alec Lewis of The Athletic reports.
Jones was present for Monday's light practice after a Week 6 bye, but he didn't participate Wednesday and thus remains in danger of missing Sunday's game against the Lions. He said that he first noticed a problem with his hip while warming up prior to the Vikings' Week 5 win over the Jets, and he ended up missing the final three quarters of that game after aggravating the injury. Head coach Kevin O'Connell said Wednesday that " [Jones] is going to progress throughout the week and hopefully has a chance to go on Sunday," per Kevin Seifert of ESPN.com.
