James Jones Giving Aaron Rodgers What He Needs to Pilot Lethal Packers Offense

It was his first time taking the field with the Green Bay Packers since Jan. 5, 2014, but wide receiver James Jones fell right back into his old ways in Green Bay's 31-23 win over the Chicago Bears on Sunday. 

In fact, though Jones did not spend OTAs or training camp with the Packers, re-signing with the team Sept. 6 to help mitigate the loss of top wideout Jordy Nelson (knee) for the season, the veteran found himself starting the first game of the season as Green Bay's No. 3 wideout.

Davante Adams was quarterback Aaron Rodgers' most targeted weapon on the day, with eight looks. No. 1 receiver Randall Cobb, playing through a shoulder injury, had a team-high five receptions.

But it was Jones, with two touchdowns on the day and a third that was wiped out because of a holding penalty, who gave Rodgers the red-zone threat he needs to keep the Packers offense difficult to slow down week after week.

Over the last two seasons, the Packers have struggled to convert in the red zone. Though they led the league in red-zone scoring percentage in 2012, at 68.52 percent, per TeamRankings, in 2013 and 2014 they converted 50.72 and 57.14 percent of the time, respectively.

Big, sure-handed weapons are essential to converting in the red zone. The Packers lost tight end Jermichael Finley six games into the 2013 season—and with him, a big red-zone threat. Then, in the following offseason, they let Jones walk in free agency.

After scoring a league-high 14 touchdowns in 2012, Jones had three in 2013, a season in which he played only 14 games because of a knee injury. General manager Ted Thompson opted not to re-sign him in free agency in part because of the emergence of young receiver Jarrett Boykin.

But Boykin didn't pan out, and the Packers were lucky that they got a solid performance out of then-rookie Davante Adams in 2014.

Jones had a career-high 73 receptions with the Oakland Raiders as well as six touchdowns. But they released him after one season, and the New York Giants cut him after he spent training camp with the team this year. 

Once Green Bay confirmed that Nelson would miss the season with a torn ACL, the murmurings of the Packers taking another look at Jones began. Signing a veteran free agent is a rarity for Thompson, especially a 31-year-old he has already let walk away in the past.

The Packers also had a lot of young talent they had spent time developing in Myles White and Jeff Janis, not to mention rookie Ty Montgomery (third-rounder), and it was clear that for Jones to come back, the team would have to release either White or Janis.

White, who had made the roster for the first time in three seasons, was the odd man out. But Thompson, who rarely uses free agency to enhance his team, understood something: Nelson had 13 touchdowns in 2014. Adams, Montgomery and Janis combined likely couldn't have made up that production. 

But Jones, if he has anything like what he showed in 2012 left in him, could approach that level of production on his own. Rob Demovsky of ESPN tweeted:

Reactions to the signing were mixed, my own included. But after Jones fell right back into things at Soldier Field on Sunday, Thompson looks like nothing short of a genius for having his finger on the pulse of the organization and knowing when to look outside for help.

Everything was in place for Jones to succeed once again in Green Bay. First, of course, there was Rodgers, who is one of the league's rare talents and can throw his receivers open, making the game easier for them. 

"I feel like I’m still playing at a high level,” Jones said upon his return to Green Bay, per Packers.com's Mike Spofford. "I don’t necessarily feel like I’m falling off, but I have a lot of people to prove wrong. If there’s any time to do it, it’s right now with the best quarterback in the league to help me out, so we’ll see how it goes and I’m excited about it."

Then there was the fact that the playbook is virtually the same as it was the last time he lined up in the offense again, with some new signals to learn and practice prior to making his debut with the Packers. 

"Ninety-nine percent of it’s the same," Jones said last week, per Brian Carriveau of 247Sports. "Aaron has switched a couple of the signals and stuff like that, and me and him will get together, go over some signals, some of the things that’s gonna happen in the game. And hopefully (I’ll) get out here to practice, get a little comfortable and see how things go."

Jones looked more than a little comfortable against the Bears—in fact, he looked like he had never left. As for how things went, how do four receptions for 51 yards and two touchdowns sound? On top of that, Jones was 4-of-4 on his targets, proving that he can be a reliable and productive option for Rodgers with Nelson sidelined.

Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports

Without Jones, the Packers would have had enough weapons to get down the field this season. That much was clear Sunday, when Adams, Cobb and tight end Richard Rodgers combined for 124 yards and eight passing first downs.

But Jones took the offense to a new level. He was responsible for converting two first downs, excluding one nullified by a penalty, that went for scores. 

All in all, the Packers went 4-of-5 in the red zone for a conversion rate of 80 percent. Jones was an integral part of that success.

The Packers had some issues Sunday, with the run defense and penalties being chief among them. But if the offense, boosted by Jones' return, can continue to perform at a high level, it can outscore almost any defense the schedule throws at it all the way into January.