We have less than a month before the NFL’s next “league year” begins on March 12. That means we have time for some post-2024 rankings.
NFL Network’s Maurice Jones-Drew recently shared his rankings of all 74 running backs who started in the 2024 season. Saquon Barkley and Derrick Henry finished atop the rankings, but they weren’t the only free-agent backs to whom Jones-Drew gave love.
Aaron Jones finished 10th in the rankings in his first season as a Minnesota Viking. He had 1,546 all-purpose yards and seven touchdowns, giving the Vikings consistency at running back that they haven’t had in several years.
Jones-Drew explained the ranking with the following:
Jones posted career-high marks in carries and rush yards in his first season with the Vikings. He was a dual-threat playmaker out of the backfield who looked spry at age 30. Fresh off his fourth 1,000-yard rushing campaign, he enters free agency this offseason but proved he has plenty left in the tank to offer an RB-needy team.
AARON JONES LEAPT INTO THE STANDS AFTER HIS 50TH CAREER RUSH TD
pic.twitter.com/CECRe0VRit
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) December 17, 2024
Although Jones is set to be a free agent next month, he and the Vikings agreed to push the void date on his contract back to March 11. This gives the two sides time to negotiate a new contract. Both Jones and Kevin O’Connell have expressed interest in the 30-year-old running back returning to Minnesota.