GREEN BAY, Wis. — Packers running back Aaron Jones will miss the final two games after being placed on injured reserve Tuesday with a knee injury.
After starting the season with a two-game suspension, over the next 12 games Jones put together a highly productive season, leading the NFL in rushing average at 5.5 yards per carry. He also had eight rushing touchdowns, which tied for eighth in the NFL. In all, he carried 133 times for 728 yards in his second NFL season. The former fifth-round pick left Sunday’s loss to the Bears with a right knee injury in the second quarter.
Jones sustained two knee injuries last season as a rookie, both MCL sprains. He said he believed this injury was similar. The Packers were eliminated from playoff contention on Sunday.
His injury leaves Jamaal Williams, who opened the season as the starter, as the only other halfback on the roster. The Packers traded Ty Montgomery to the Ravens earlier this season. They have fullback Danny Vitale on the roster but have two running backs on the practice squad: Lavon Coleman and Malcom Johnson.
Williams rushed for 55 yards on 12 carries with a touchdown against the Bears.
“I feel like he did a great job and I told him, ‘Hey, we’re going to need you,'” Jones said Sunday. “Right after that, he scored a touchdown. I think Jamaal did a great job protecting, catching the ball and running the ball. It just shows what kind of back he is and what he can do, and I’m happy for him.”
The Packers signed a receiver, Allen Lazard, off the Jaguars practice squad to take Jones’ spot on the active roster. The Packers could be without receiver Randall Cobb, who sustained a concussion against the Bears.
Jones was suspended without pay for two games for violating the NFL Policy and Program for Substances of Abuse on July 3. The suspension stemmed from an early October 2017 arrest and marijuana-related charge, to which he pleaded no contest in February.