Does Aaron Jones have an AJ Dillon problem in Green Bay? I Yahoo Fantasy Football Forecast
In this edition of the Yahoo Fantasy Football Forecast, Matt Harmon and Andy Behrens discuss the running back situation in Green Bay, including if fantasy managers should be worried about Jones’ workload as the season progresses.
Video Transcript
[AUDIO LOGO]
MATT HARMON: Andy, I've been waiting all podcast to ask you, how much should I be freaking out about saying all summer Aaron Jones is the perfect second-round pick? And Scott Pianowski, right there in my corner, gassing me up too. He's like, yeah, I'm with you. And I'm like, all right, Scott's smart as hell. I must be right about this.
And week one, 37 snaps for Aaron Jones, 31 for AJ Dillon. Eight touches for Aaron Jones, 15 touches for AJ Dillon. Dillon bangs in the goal-line touchdown. Aaron Jones does run a ton of routes, 28 routes. I don't know.
I know that Matt LaFleur said after the game we got to get Aaron Jones the ball more. I'm like, yes, correct. You do have to get Aaron Jones the ball more, both for my fantasy team and your real-life team. Am I freaking out a little too soon? Or did I overrate Aaron Jones coming into this year?
ANDY BEHRENS: I mean, I think it's appropriate to freak out a little bit, right? Because it was just eight touches. And he basically saw the same-- he saw, in fact, one less target, one fewer target than AJ Dillon, which some of the credit there goes to AJ Dillon, who's just been a much better receiving--
MATT HARMON: He's good, yeah.
ANDY BEHRENS: --option than I think a lot of us had forecast when he was coming into the league. He's just a really good player. But on the other hand, I can talk myself into this idea that they could be leaving opening week saying, OK, we got to find nine targets, 12 targets for Aaron Jones. There's a guy we can at least depend on. We've got to recommit to Aaron Jones, and we've got to make sure that-- he might very well be our most dynamic receiving threat, and we've got to find him eight to 10 times.
That could definitely happen. So that is what I would be rooting for. I don't think there are going to be very many games where Aaron Jones is in line for like 15 or 16 carries. I think it is pretty reasonable to think that AJ Dillon will probably double him up in terms of carries most weeks, but the receiving workload is where you'd really expect Aaron Jones to shine pretty soon.
Because, again, all options basically failed them in week one. That might be unfair to Doubs. He was fine. Lazard probably coming back for week two. I think he was a participant in practice on Wednesday, which would be a good sign. So getting Lazard on the field would be a big deal. But, yeah, that's what I would be hoping for with Aaron Jones is that they just say, OK, we got to throw to him a lot.
MATT HARMON: I'm not sure if I feel any better after that, but I will say a couple of things. Hosting the podcast every day, it's like I hear your opinions and Scott's opinions and, obviously, Dalton's opinions and everybody else that comes through. Frank Schwab and everyone else.
It becomes a situation where I have-- and this is good, right, because it's the push and pull of the disagreement and the debate that hopefully the listener benefits from. And me kind of playing that role here, at different points in the offseason, as I'm gassing myself up about Aaron Jones, I've got Scott as the devil or angel on my shoulder saying, yes, he's the perfect second-round pick. You're right. You're right.
But then I've got on the-- and I can clearly remember you saying at one point in the summer, the thing about Aaron Jones is that he very clearly has an AJ Dillon problem. And now the devil or angel, Andy-- I'm not going to assign values to you guys--
[LAUGHTER]
--is clearly screaming in my ear, remember when I told you that Aaron Jones very clearly has an AJ Dillon problem? So I'm hoping, Andy-- I love you, bro, but I'm hoping that you quiet down here after week two looks a little bit better.