The Sunday Night Football matchup for Week 2 of the 2025 NFL season, featuring the Minnesota Vikings hosting the Atlanta Falcons, has been a defensive clinic. With less than 10 minutes in the game, neither team had a touchdown, as the score bug read 15-6.
The passing attack for both sides, led by two young quarterbacks drafted in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft, was brutal. As a result, both squads leaned heavily on the run. However, for the Vikings, that reliance came at a cost, with star running back Aaron Jones Sr. going down with an injury.
What Happened To Aaron Jones?
Trying to balance the running attack between Jordan Mason and Jones, head coach Kevin O’Connell was once again splitting touches between the two. While Mason led with nine carries for 30 yards, Jones wasn’t far behind with five carries worth 23 yards.
However, midway through the fourth quarter, the Vikings got brutal news. Kevin Seifert of ESPN reported on X, “Aaron Jones has a hamstring injury and his return is questionable.”
Aaron Jones on the lead block for JJ 💪
ATLvsMIN on NBC
Stream on @NFLPlus + Peacock pic.twitter.com/9MtrSvAgei— NFL (@NFL) September 15, 2025
With McCarthy at 158 yards on a completion rate just over 50%, an already rough evening was looking worse by the minute for the Vikings.
With Mason being featured increasingly in their schemes, Jones’ role has taken a hit this season. After averaging 15 carries a game last year, the former Green Bay Packers superstar had fewer than 10 attempts in each of the first two games of the year.
What Could Jones’ Injury Mean for Fantasy?
Jones remains the Vikings’ starting running back, but it’s clear his role will be nowhere near as expansive as it was last season. Jordan Mason has mixed in a ton and looks to be the team’s short-yardage and goal-line back. Of course, the Vikings never got close enough to the end zone for us to truly see what would happen.
Mason has experience in a feature back role, serving as Christian McCaffrey’s substitute last season. If Jones ends up not playing next week, it’s unlikely Ty Chandler would step into the Jones role entirely. He would undoubtedly see some snaps on offense, but we’d be looking at Mason in a reasonably bigger role. He would go from RB3 to legitimate RB2.