While relying on the right arm of Aaron Rodgers, the Green Bay Packers have experienced a ton of success, even if it has only resulted in one Super Bowl ring. But with Davante Adams out of town and a plethora of wide receivers that are still in their ‘prove-it’ phases, the identity of Green Bay’s offense should be changed.
With the two-headed tandem of Aaron Jones and AJ Dillon, the Packers have one of the league’s better two-deep options to utilize on the ground.
For Jones, his skill set allows him to be utilized both in between the tackles and outside the tackles, helping keep him on the field for more sets. As the lead back, Jones is a proven entity that has a solid rapport alongside Rodgers and the offense, so trusting him to help lead the offensive identity change would be a safe place to start.
Then with Dillon, his power-style of downhill running makes him hard to stop, especially when he is able to keep his legs moving in the pile. Filling the role of Thunder next to Jones as Lightning, Dillon is especially valuable in the colder months, as the smash-mouth approach that the Packers frequently shift to once the calendar flips to November only makes their offense that more dangerous.
446 carries for 1,900 yards and 13 TDs on the ground in 2021 place them near the middle of the pack in those trackable categories, so expecting them to all grow during this upcoming season is quite realistic. 520 carries for 2,300 yards and 17 TDs on the ground are all potentially reachable on the backs of Jones and Dillon, both of whom could very well have the chance to produce close to 1,000 rushing yards each.
Individually, both Jones and Dillon produced similar stat lines on the ground – Dillon barely led the way with 803 yards on 187 carries (5 TDs), while Jones produced 799 yards on 171 carries (4 TDs). Jones likely will still be heavily looked to for the passing work out of the backfield, but Dillon more than held his own last season, showing that even though he did not have a ton of experience in that area while in college, he has solid hands and can be looked to more out of the backfield.
The offensive line was another area of emphasis for the Packers during the most recent NFL Draft, so the front office deciding to bring in more help there only reinforces the idea that this team will have a different offensive identity this upcoming season. Helping keep Rodgers healthy by taking some of the game away from him may seem a bit odd, especially with how much money he is going to be earning, but the team functions at its best when they are able to keep defenses guessing, which is what incorporating the run on a heavier basis will do.
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Mike Johrendt has been an avid fan of the Packers ever since he can remember. He is now a writer at PackersTalk and you can follow him on Twitter at @MJohrendt23
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