What Can James Jones Bring to the Table?

[Da-news-now]

The man with the “the plan” is back with the Packers. James Jones flew in to Green Bay and said that the plan was to sign a deal.

Mission accomplished.

Packers fans had been clamoring for Jones to come home and it’s important that we understand what he brings to the table. Lets take a look at what Jones did when he left Green Bay in hopes that we might get a feel for what he can still do.

In 2014 James Jones signed a three year 10 million dollar deal with the Oakland Raiders. The Raiders let Jones go in May and the Giants let him go when he failed to stick on their 53 man roster. The question is why? The answer might be that David Carr and Eli Manning are no Aaron Rodgers. Time will tell but if Jones is close to what he was when he left Green Bay he can be productive in this offense.

James Jones is no Jordy Nelson. Any notion of Jones solving that problem must be done away with. Will he help with production? Absolutely. The lost production of Nelson however will come from multiple guys at multiple positions. Jones is not the answer, but he is part of the puzzle. The biggest loss with Jordy is the deep threat and a deep threat James Jones is not.

Last season James Jones was tied as the 80th best receiver in the league according to Pro Football Focus. Jones’ only negative area according to PFF was his blocking with a score of -.5. All other scores are in the positive but they are also less than a score of 1. What does this mean for Jones? Well, in 2013 Jones was ranked as the 124th best receiver in the league. So, 80th is an improvement.

While in Oakland, James Jones played in 14 games but only started 10 of them. Jones was targeted 112 times with 73 receptions. A completion percentage of 65.2%. When the season was finished Jones came away with 666 yards, 6 touchdowns and an average of 9.1 yards per reception. All of these numbers are close to the same production he had in 2013 except one.

With an average of 9.1 yards per reception last year Jones dropped his average by 4.7 yards. For the seven years that Jones was in Green Bay he averaged 13.9 yards per reception. So why the drop? Look at the team the Raiders fielded last season and how they ran their offense. The Oakland Raiders ran a simple offense last season that included zero semblance of a deep threat. Not because Derek Carr doesn’t have an arm but because of the lack of talent on the roster. The Raiders needed a deep threat badly last season to open up defenses. With no answer for that on the roster Oakland was forced to take what was given to them.

So what can we expect from James Jones?

I would not be shocked to see a stat line very similar to what he had last season if the Packers cannot find a deep threat. The loss of Jordy Nelson will still be an issue until the Packers find the guy to rip the top off. Who will it be? Jeff Janis? Maybe but I would not expect that by week one. This will be a slow process and Packers fans need to remain patient as it develops. Signing James Jones was a good move but the Packers still need to find a way to put this puzzle together.

Thank you for reading. Jeremy VanDerLinden is a lead writer and owner of Titletown Sound Off. You can follow him on Twitter @TTSO_Jeremy. For even more Packers content, follow us on Twitter and Like us on Facebook.

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[Dubz41]

JJ brings the most amount of trust as anyone of our WRs. Remember when ARod kind of went to bat for him?
He's Aaron's security blanket. He is back to his old role of 3rd or 4th Wideout, must still be good matchup in that role.

 

[Mark87]

I am fully on the "bad move" train with this one. If I eat crow later so be it. Very poor front office/coaching move and one that can fracture the locker room.

 

[Defensewins]

I am fully on the "bad move" train with this one. If I eat crow later so be it. Very poor front office/coaching move and one that can fracture the locker room.

I agree. We're about to bring back a 31 year old WR who last season averaged 9 yards per reception entirely because he's familiar with McCarthy's system and has experience with Rodgers. It isn't because he has great speed or hands.

I don't want the Packers to cut someone young enough to be the next James Jones.

 

[rpiotr01]

It's not like they're bringing in a complete outsider, this isn't a desperate team bringing in Randy Moss. The vets on the team all know Jones and have played with him before, he didn't leave on bad terms. The team has brought players back - Ahman Green and Johnny Jolly to name two recent ones - without locker room issues.

I'm not convinced this is even a long term move. Cobb's shoulder won't be normal for a while and Ty Montgomery is dinged to some unknown extent. Adams, Janis and White are your only healthy options. Things will be in flux for a while as the playing time sorts itself out.

 

[Scoremore12]

Not a needed move at all. I think it hurts more than helps in the long run by taking reps, game time, etc from our young, up & coming talent and slowing their growth. We were just fine with the WRs we had and did not need Jones or any other vet brought in. I liked Jones when he was here before, but this was not a good move. Its not about disliking Jones, its disliking the move.

 

[Pugger]

I too believe this was an insurance move more than anything else.

 

[GBP4EVER]

Right now at this point in Jones career I don't see him better then a Myles White. Perhaps if this is Rodgers demanding a vet he knows Ted needs to tell him lets see how these kids work out if not Jones will probably be there 3-4 weeks from now anyways can sign him then.

 

[WingT22]

There is no GM in football who has more shown that he'd rather in the vast majority of instances, keep a younger player over picking up an older veteran when it comes to final cut downs, even when having prior teams with a legit shot to win a title as the Packers have this year.

So if Ted really thinks that White likely had a promising future, I can't see him cutting him now. It's not like Ted has been one to worry about fans clamoring for him to make a move like this. When he believes in a younger player enough, he keeps that player, regardless of inexperience.

Same for McCarthy. During his tenure as head coach, he's constantly preached about believing in Ted's vision of the Packers being a draft and develop franchise. He never complains about Thompson's inactivity in free agency.

As for Jones stats in Oakland, obviously playing with that team vs Green Bay was a big factor to drop from nearly 14 yards per catch to 9 in just one season. For most non-special receivers, a great QB will make most of them look better than they are and a bad QB situation will make many look worse than they really are.

I don't think JJ is the save all many our pegging him to be as I still remember the drops and fumbles he has had at times. Still makes me think the Cobb injury is more then they made out and that Janis isn't as far along as we all think.

 

[kypackfan]

I think White will get a look from a team that needs a slot WR. Packers had too many with 2 outside and 3 slot WRs and Abby on the PS. If it had been Cobb who got injured instead of Jordy, White is probably on the team. I think this may show that the coaches don't think Janis is ready. Great potential, but not ready yet.