The Green Bay Packers’ offense is one of the most explosive in football, but it’s not because of Aaron Rodgers or Davante Adams. It’s because of a fifth round pick who has been an unsung hero for years.
Aaron Rodgers and Davante Adams are the Superstars, but the Green Bay Packers’ offense really clicks because of a fifth round pick.
Aaron Rodgers and Davante Adams are the Green Bay Packers’ offensive superstars, as everyone knows.
Rodgers is the reigning MVP, as well as a three-time MVP. Adams has established an unrivaled connection with his quarterback over the course of several years and is probably the greatest wide receiver in the game. His numbers back him up, but the eye test is just as effective. Watch every Green Bay game and you’ll watch Adams get open and produce huge plays no matter what a defense throws at him.
Because of their celebrity, Rodgers and Adams get the spotlight, but a lesser-known star has developed in Green Bay, and he’s just as essential to the Packers’ offense as its quarterback and wide receiver.
Aaron Jones, the running back, is that star.
Aaron Jones was a Green Bay Packers project player at one time.
Green Bay Packers’ Aaron Jones #33 rushes for yards at Lambeau Field during a game against the Pittsburgh Steelers | Stacy Revere/Getty Images
Jones was selected as a project selection in the fifth round of the 2017 NFL Draft by the Packers. Jones was a shifty and quick runner with a lot of promise coming out of the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP for short), but he didn’t have a lot of big-game experience to back it up. Because UTEP is in Conference USA, it was difficult to predict how his skill would transfer against NFL defenses.
Jones was a good college running back, there was no question about it.
Jones ran for 4,114 yards in four seasons for the Miners, becoming the school’s all-time leading rusher. His 33 career touchdowns rank him second all-time in school history, and he carried for 100 yards or more in a game 17 times, including five times for 200 yards.
At UTEP, Jones was a true legend.
He was selected in the fifth round by the Packers, and he was gradually incorporated into the team during his first two seasons. His first season he only had 81 rushing attempts, but the next season he had 133.
Jones burst into the scene in the 2019 season, and he hasn’t looked back since.
- 236 rushes for 1,084 yards and 16 touchdowns in 2019. 49 catches for 474 yards and three touchdowns on receptions
- 2020: 1,104 yards on 201 running attempts and nine touchdowns. 47 catches for 355 yards and two touchdowns on the receiving end.
- So far in 2021, he has rushed for 385 yards and two touchdowns on 83 attempts. 21 catches for 166 yards and four touchdowns on the ground
Jones is one of the NFL’s less well-known players.
Over the last several seasons, running backs like Derrick Henry, Dalvin Cook, Christian McCaffery, and Alvin Kamara have received the most of the attention, but Jones has been just as effective as any of them. He’s also extremely consistent and long-lasting, which is remarkable given that he’s not as large as some of the other backs. Jones is 5-foot-9 and weighs 208 pounds, but he plays much larger and more powerfully than he seems.
Jones’s uniqueness as a running back stems from the fact that he excels at every element of the position.
He’s as quick and shifty as they come in the league, so he’s always a danger to take it to the house when he gets into open space. Jones, on the other hand, is a surprise powerful runner between the tackles who isn’t hesitant to drop his shoulder and initiate contact or absorb a heavy hit.
Jones is a solid pass-catcher out of the backfield, and he’s become one of Rodger’s favorite targets in the flats and on wheel routes down the sideline.
Last but not least, and maybe most importantly for head coach Matt LaFleur and his quarterback, Jones is a tough pass-blocker.
Jones will put his nose in the game and plug a gap against blitzing linebackers like it’s his sole job. There aren’t many great running backs that can accomplish that on a consistent basis as Jones does for the Packers.
Despite the presence of Rodgers, Matt LaFleur wants to operate a balanced or even run-heavy attack.
LaFleur has said in the past that his offense works best when the run game is able to set it up. When the Packers have two superstars in the passing game in Adams and Rodgers, it may not seem like a big deal, but it’s crucial for Green Bay’s offense. It makes things simpler for both the quarterback and the wide receiver in the end.
According to Football 101, the more you run the ball, the more a defense needs to focus on stopping the run. By moving safeties closer to the line of scrimmage, more men may be committed to the box. This also entails linebackers focusing their attention on the running back before moving on to their covering duties. To move a linebacker out of position for a pass over their head between the seams, all it takes is a stride or two forward.
A good running game leads to a great play-action game, and LaFleur has succeeded as a play-caller in this area.
When the natural tendency is to become pass crazy and let Rodgers and Adams play catch, the Packers have had to remind themselves of that this season. Defenses have caught on and will either play two-high safeties to take away the long balls, or double and even triple cover Adams. A healthy dosage of Jones and his backfield partner A.J. Dillon keeps defenders on their toes.
When you consider Jones’ ability to function as Green Bay’s second-best wide receiver at times, it’s obvious that he’s the most valuable player on the team. Without Jones, Adams becomes a player who can be effectively erased by defenses, while Rodgers becomes an old quarterback who will be blitzed until he has nightmares.
The fifth-round selection out of UTEP has quickly established himself as the most essential player on one of the league’s top offenses.
ESPN and Pro Football Reference provided the statistics.
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The davante adams height is a 5th round pick out of Fresno State. He was drafted in the same year as Aaron Rodgers and has been the Packers number one receiver ever since.
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