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For one moment, Aaron Jones' fans were frothing at the mouth as it seemed that Josh Jacobs and Jones would share the backfield in 2024. Instead, Jones had exited and was replaced by Jacobs. There are reasons for Packers fans to be excited about the change, but even greater reasons for Jones to harbor resentment at his former team.
Speaking on Tuesday's edition of "Pro Football Talk," NFL analyst Chris Simms explained why Jones would have resentment against his former team, including some with Jacobs.
"It's even more like 'they got rid of me and brought in another running back and no [it's] not exactly like it's like the youngest guy in the world.' It's Josh Jacobs, year six of his career so that's gotta irk him a little bit," Simms said. [00:05:04][21.1] PFT
Packers get marginally younger with switch from Aaron Jones and Josh Jacobs
Aaron Jones is heading into an age 29 season. However, thanks to his birthday landing in December, he will spend some of his 30s this season with the Minnesota Vikings.
Meanwhile, Josh Jacobs, 26, still has nearly half a decade before his 30. However, the team could go even younger with an RB in the 2024 NFL Draft. Instead, they went with the veteran.
Today's RBs often can age a bit sooner than in the past, with many fans setting the cutoff around age 28. That's because the position has trended smaller in recent years. It creates more difficulty for defenses to see the RB behind big offensive linemen, plus opening up a higher chance of injury.
As such, many would argue that Jones is now past his prime and Jacobs has a couple of more years left.
Jones rushed for 656 yards and held a 4.6 yards per carry average last season. Meanwhile, Jacobs rushed for 805 yards and 3.5 yards per carry. However, both RBs had quality seasons in 2022. Jones rushed for 1121 yards and 5.3 yards per carry, while Jacobs rushed for 1653 yards and 4.9 yards per carry, totaling 12 rushing touchdowns.
While both are coming off down seasons, one may argue that Jones' down season was the first of a string as he ages. As for Jacobs, the Green Bay Packers will hope his down season was a momentary setback.
