Over Christmas week, I read a feel-good LinkedIn article that had Millennial and Gen Z clickbait written all over it. The post was about “personality hires” and how companies should fill some roles based on merit and the candidate’s ability to bring positivity into company culture and boost leadership morale.
As someone who is basically the Walmart Great Value brand of workplace mediocrity, I ate that article up. Imagine telling a recruiter in an interview that you would be a “great personality hire” while keeping a straight face. How do you even convey that quality?
I guess it’s for people unlike myself, people who ooze charisma. People like Aaron Jones.
The Minnesota Vikings’ charismatic running back signed a one-year contract with the team in March. His productivity this season would suggest he’s worth the $7 million they’re paying. Still, we don’t know if he’ll play games in purple beyond this year.
The reason to keep him around is twofold. Despite his age, his impact on the field alone warrants consideration for a new contract. However, paired with his natural leadership qualities, there’s little reason to let him walk.
Still Got It
Surely professional athletes roll their eyes when they hear critiques about their age. However, it’s a factor in contract negotiations. When running backs reach their upper 20s, teams usually try to restructure their deals or cut them to save money.
Jones mentioned that breaking the 1,000-yard mark this year was special because of how the league views backs on the wrong side of 30. “This will mean even more with me turning 30,” Jones said. “[People say] backs at that age, that’s when they decline…. But with the help of my teammates [and] coaches, we were able to check that feat off the list.”
Some of that approach is warranted, given situations like Todd Gurley (who was only 26) and the Los Angeles Rams in early 2020. Running back productivity can be less predictable in the long term, so general managers are finicky in the modern era, and Jones turned 30 earlier this month.
That said, he’s not just another running back, and he’s made that clear over the course of his career. He has over 1,000 yards rushing with two games to go. Not every running back can keep up that kind of productivity at 30. Such feats are reserved for the Emmitt Smiths and the Tiki Barbers of the world, and those players are few and far between.
Well, not only has Jones achieved the same at 30, but he’s also done so while maintaining the core of his identity as a player – and that’s as a dual threat. Of Jones’ 1,394 all-purpose yards, 348 are receiving yards, which puts him on pace for his most total receiving yardage since 2019.
His ability to catch and run is invaluable in Kevin O’Connell‘s throw-first offense. Given his production on the field and the cap space available to the Vikings in 2025, he’s worth at least another one-year offer. However, Jones may be looking for something longer term. The uncertainty of a one-year deal can frustrate a player, especially for a player like Jones, who writes “keep doubting me!!!” on his wrist wrap in black marker.
Personality Hire
It’s rare to hear NFL players criticize or blame other players, especially their teammates. When media members ask a player about their teammates, even obvious locker room tensions barely make it through the players’ lips. That kind of positivity in the face of media scrutiny — except for a disgruntled few — is such in the NFL that it’s difficult to navigate what’s true and what isn’t.
Still, there’s no uncertainty about Jones’ positivity. He leaves little room for interpretation between his community outreach and his zest for sentimental expression. It’s a quality worth adding to the resumé when discussing contract extensions.
“Aaron’s one of those guys that just fit the glue of this program,” said T.J. Hockenson. “Just a great dude, a great individual person. When you talk to Aaron, he’s nothing but down-to-earth, really cares about you as a person, [and] wants to learn who you are as a person and get close to you.
“But as a teammate, he’s incredible. You want a block for a guy like that. He can make things shake in the backfield.”
Vikings fans likely remember the toxicity of the latter Zimmer years. However, a cup full of O’Connell mouthwash has eliminated that bitter taste. Positive players like Jones matter to this new locker room culture.
“My main thing is just how good of a person he is,” said Justin Jefferson. “Just besides his ability to play football, to run the ball, it’s just him being a good person. He’s always having a smile on his face. He’s always dabbing up the guys, always trying to give us encouraging words before we go out there in the field.”
You only need to look at the treatment of his former team upon returning to Lambeau Field to see the proof. Before the Vikings played the Green Bay Packers in Week 4, Jones posted a 1,500-word testimony about his time in Green Bay and what it meant to him. He highlighted the struggle of losing his father and the organizational support he felt throughout it.
Whether the Vikings offer another contract or not, it’s likely they’ll draft a running back in 2025. If they do, another year with Jones could make for an excellent complementary backfield, provided he’s willing to share the load. That would allow him to lead a younger back in the transition to the NFL. It could also limit his carries and keep his legs fresh for the full season.
Dual threat is the term we use for backs like Jones. In this case, it’s the reason to keep him around. He’s still good, and we all like him.
But does he want to return? A veteran player who went out and proved himself may be more concerned with stability and paycheck as his reward than anything else. Unfortunately, it’s difficult to imagine that the Vikings offer him a multi-year deal. Then again, the organization knows his value better than any of us.
