Packer Central

Aaron Jones Says ‘Thank You’ in ‘Message to Green Bay’

Aaron Jones, one of the best players in Green Bay Packers history, will return to Lambeau Field as part of the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday. He sent a message to Green Bay via The Players Tribune.

Bill Huber

Green Bay Packers running back Aaron Jones celebrates with fans after scoring a touchdown against the Chicago Bears in 2022.
Green Bay Packers running back Aaron Jones celebrates with fans after scoring a touchdown against the Chicago Bears in 2022. / Dan Powers/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin / USA TODAY NETWORK
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GREEN BAY, Wis. – On Sunday, Aaron Jones will be on the field when the Green Bay Packers host the Minnesota Vikings at Lambeau Field.

This time, No. 33 will be wearing a purple Vikings helmet rather than green and gold.

The Packers released Jones this offseason. A day later, Jones agreed to a contract with the Vikings.

In a story for The Players Tribune, which is owned by Minute Media, the parent company of Sports Illustrated, Jones said thank you to the organization and the fans.

Jones’ story started in 2017, his rookie season. The Packers drafted Jamaal Williams in the fourth round, Jones in the fifth round and Devante Mays in the seventh round. According to Jones, the receivers were making “bets” on which running back would come out on top of the competition.

One day during training camp, Davante Adams told Jones that he was his “dog” in the race.

“I can’t even tell you what that did for me, honestly,” Jones said.

Another key moment came early in the season. Jones was inactive for Week 1 and relegated to special teams duty in Weeks 2 and 3.

Finally, in Week 4 against the Chicago Bears, injuries in the backfield gave Jones his chance.

“When I get into the huddle it’s crazy. A-Rod, he just looks at me and he says, ‘Hey. I am one of your biggest fans in this entire organization. It’s your time. Yours, right now.’”

That was a story Rodgers had shared a few times over the years. Jones carried 13 times for 49 yards and scored his first career touchdown in a blowout victory. 

Later that season, with Jones barely playing, Rodgers called a timeout and demanded that Jones be put into the game “Now!”

Wrote Jones of the moment: “I’m looking down at my jersey … and suddenly I’m like, Oh wait. I’m 33. That’s ME. I don’t even remember what the play was, or what happened on it, but I just know how good that felt.”

From the 182nd pick of the draft and 19th running back off the board, Jones emerged as one of the best running backs in Packers history and one of the more explosive running backs of all-time. He’s fourth in the draft class in rushing yards – with a decent chance he’ll be up to No. 2 by the end of Sunday’s game.

Jones wasn’t just a great player. He became a pillar of the Green Bay community and a face-of-the-franchise type of player, which is why the team signed him to a contract extension in March 2021.

Less than two weeks later, his beloved father, Alvin Jones Sr., passed away.

The Packers were there for Jones. He remains filled with gratitude.

“That’s the toughest thing I’ve been through in my whole life, and I went through it while we were preparing for a season where the goal was the Super Bowl,” he wrote. “I knew that everyone was counting on me to be at my best — which is a lot to carry when you’re grieving a loved one.

“The Packers helped me carry that grief as much as they could. So many of my teammates reached out and made me feel that fraternity. At the funeral, I honestly couldn’t believe it, Coach LaFleur flew all the way down to Texas. Brian Gutekunst (our GM) and Ben Sirmans (our running backs coach) also flew down. To say they didn’t have to do that is an understatement … and I know I could never repay them on a football field. So I’ll just say, ‘Thank you.’”

Jones no doubt will be motivated to show Gutekunst that he made a mistake by releasing him. But there will be no hatred, no vengeance.

As Jones concluded:

“No G on the helmet Sunday, always one in my heart.”

For the full story, including his thoughts on the “#FreeAaronJones” hashtag, how the franchise had his back following an off-the-field incident, his father and the fans, click here.

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Bill Huber
BILL HUBER

Bill Huber, who has covered the Green Bay Packers since 2008, is the publisher of Packers On SI, a Sports Illustrated channel. E-mail: packwriter2002@yahoo.com History: Huber took over Packer Central in August 2019. Twitter: https://twitter.com/BillHuberNFL Background: Huber graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, where he played on the football team, in 1995. He worked in newspapers in Reedsburg, Wisconsin Dells and Shawano before working at The Green Bay News-Chronicle and Green Bay Press-Gazette from 1998 through 2008. With The News-Chronicle, he won several awards for his commentaries and page design. In 2008, he took over as editor of Packer Report Magazine, which was founded by Hall of Fame linebacker Ray Nitschke, and PackerReport.com. In 2019, he took over the new Sports Illustrated site Packer Central, which he has grown into one of the largest sites in the Sports Illustrated Media Group.