Packers Have Right Plan in Signing Josh Jacobs, Releasing Aaron Jones amid NFL Rumors

The NFL's free-agent running back market took some big turns on Monday, the first day of the league's legal tampering period. And to the surprise of many, the Green Bay Packers were among the teams that got involved.

According to Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, the Packers are signing Josh Jacobs to a four-year, $48 million deal. Per that report, the 26-year-old RB will get a $12.5 million signing bonus and earn a total of $14.8 million in the first year of the contract.

What did that mean for incumbent Packers star running back Aaron Jones? ESPN's Adam Schefter reported that Jones will be getting released, which the 29-year-old appeared to confirm himself via an Instagram post.

It's an unexpected turn of events. Especially after Green Bay general manager Brian Gutekunst said during a press conference in early February that Jones would "absolutely" be back with the team in 2024.

Plans change, though, and the Packers likely decided to pivot because they had a chance to land Jacobs. He's three years younger than Jones, and it's possible he'll have a higher ceiling moving forward.

That's why Green Bay is making the right decision to change up its backfield.

Jacobs has had fewer injury concerns than Jones, although he missed four games last season due to a quad ailment. That contributed to a down season for Jacobs, who was also playing on a franchise tag after he was unable to work out a long-term deal with the Las Vegas Raiders last offseason.

Rumors swirled this offseason about a potential reunion between Jacobs and the Raiders. But clearly, those did not materialize on Monday.

As the Packers continue to build around quarterback Jordan Love, Jacobs could again be a top-tier rushing option with a change of scenery and a clean bill of health. In 2022, he led the NFL with 1,653 rushing yards while scoring 12 touchdowns in 17 games.

Jacobs may not be as much of a receiving threat as Jones, but he's been a solid pass-catching back in the past. He also could be much more of a factor on the ground, assuming Green Bay plans to feed him the ball a lot.

The move doesn't make the Packers' offense among the best units in the league quite yet. They could use an addition to their receiving corps, which would give Love another strong option to throw to.

But Jacobs is an exciting player who should fit well in Green Bay. So it was a smart move for the franchise to make an RB switch that should benefit the team not only in 2024, but for several years beyond that.