Packers Pro Bowl running back Aaron Jones is expected to miss 1-2 weeks after sustaining a mild MCL sprain during Sunday's win over the Seahawks, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter. Jones sustained the injury during a running play near the end of the third quarter. Despite losing Jones, the Packers scored two fourth quarter touchdowns to record a 17-0 win over the Seahawks.
A former fifth-round pick, Jones has been an integral part of the Packers' offense for the past several years. A 1,000-yard rusher each of the past two seasons, Jones led the NFL with 16 rushing touchdowns in 2019. He earned his first Pro Bowl selection in 2020 after averaging a career-high 5.5 yards per carry. Jones has amassed 839 total yards and seven touchdowns through 10 games this season while helping the Packers get off to an 8-2 start.
"That's a big blow," Packers coach Matt LaFleur said about Jones' injury, via ESPN's Rob Demovsky. "It's hard to replace a guy like that. Just everything he brings to this football team on a daily basis. Just watching him out at practice, the effort that he plays with. Here's a guy that, he's always the same. He's super consistent in his approach, his work ethic, his attitude, his energy.
"Yeah, you miss that when somebody's not in the lineup. But other guys are going to have to step up, and we're going to have to do a great job as a staff of making sure that we supplement that in a different area, whatever that may be, whether it's throwing the football, and we've got to find ways to still produce without him."
Second-year running back AJ Dillon will carry the Packers' workload in Jones' absence. Jones was the focal point of the Packers' offense during the team's touchdown drives late in Sunday's game. Along with scoring both of Green Bay's touchdowns, Dillon turned in the game's longest play on a 50-yard reception from quarterback Aaron Rodgers. Dillon finished the game with 66 yards rushing and 62 yards receiving.
"Very proud of him," quarterback Aaron Rodgers said of Dillon, via Matt Schneidman of The Athletic. "He's a great kid. He works really hard. He's improved in all the areas that he needed to to become a complete back … I mean, he ran through unblocked guys on both of his touchdown runs, so not much more you can say than that. He's a guy that's become very, very reliable and his catch and broken tackles and run down the sidelines to get us out of a backed-up situation, into their side of the field to put the game away and go up three scores, that was the play of the game, for sure. He probably had the three plays of the game with the touchdown runs and that catch-and-run."
Dillion will likely start for the Packers' Week 11 road game against the Vikings. The Packers will then host the Rams in a battle of two of the NFC's top teams before going on their Week 12 bye.
