GREEN BAY, Wis. — Aaron Jones signed off from his Zoom calls the same way all season: By flashing 3s on each hand to represent his No. 33 with the Green Bay Packers.
On Friday, he signed off a different way: holding up a gold “G” medallion on a chain around his neck.
There was, however, a moment where he wondered if he might be sporting a different logo next season, and he didn’t like how it felt — especially after the way the Packers’ season ended for a season straight year: one game short of the Super Bowl.
“Walking off the field the last game with my head down and not the way I wanted it to end and going through my mind, I’m like, ‘Man is this way my career’s going to end in Green Bay and in Lambeau?'” Jones said on a Zoom call Friday. “I definitely didn’t want to finish my career like that here, and I’m just blessed to be able to come back and suit back up here.”
Jones on Friday finally signed the four-year, $48 million contract he agreed to nearly two weeks ago, just before he would have hit the open market as a free agent. Jones fumbled and then missed the rest of the NFC Championship Game loss to the Buccaneers because of a chest injury.
“We feel like we have unfinished business, so I just feel like it was the right fit for me,” Jones said.
The deal is essentially a two-year, $20 million contract given the massive jumps in base salaries in the final two seasons. His agent, Drew Rosenhaus, said he “anticipated bigger offers in free agency, but Aaron wanted to stay with the Packers.”
Jones, a fifth-round pick in 2017, said he did not think he left money on the table.
“It’s more money than my previous contract and if you continue to work, it will be there,” Jones said. “Like I said, I feel like this is a perfect fit for me. I’ve been in this offense. I know what comes with it. I know my teammates here, and we feel like we have unfinished business, so I just feel like it was the right fit for me.”
Jones finished fourth in the NFL last season with 1,104 rushing yards despite missing two games with a calf injury. He made his first Pro Bowl. It was Jones’ second straight 1,000-yard rushing season. He rushed for 1,084 yards and led the NFL with 19 touchdowns in 2019. Including the playoffs that season, he scored 23 times, the most for a season in team history.
“I feel like I haven’t even scratched the surface to enter my prime yet,” Jones said. “I feel like I’ve still got a lot of growing to do, and I think it’s going to be scary for a lot of people and just continue to grind and work and I’ll be right where I want to be.”
With running back Jamaal Williams signing with the Lions this offseason. Jones will likely be paired with AJ Dillon, who was selected in the second round last year, in the backfield behind Aaron Rodgers.
“AJ hit me up right away and was happy to have me back,” Jones said. “AJ is just a great guy. At the end of the season, he texted me and Jamaal and thanked us for all that we’d done and he hoped he could still be our teammate and things like that. … He’s already showcased a little of the things that he can do. I think we complement each other really well. I feel like it’s going to be a good year.”