Aaron Jones did not get the franchise tag yesterday. Anyone who paid attention to these kinds of things is not surprised that Jones did not get a tag from the Green Bay Packers. It did not make sense for Green Bay to make that kind of deal with their talented running back. It is more than likely teams will make their best case for the young running back. Jones is represented by one of the sharks in the industry, Drew Rosenhaus, so, my guess is he will try to get Jones to drive up his market. But the deal that Tampa Bay Buccaneers star linebacker Lavonte David just received made me wonder if Jones might do something similar. There is a case for it and a case against it. Which outweighs the other?

For those that unfamiliar, David signed a 2-year $25 million deal yesterday. That’s a good deal for Tampa Bay. They only have to pay him $12.5 million over the next two years. David could maybe take one more swing at a free agency at 33 years old. Now, David is a bit older than Jones, but the concept could be the same here. Take less money now and capitalize later when the cap is normalized. There’s an opportunity to win a ring immediately. The chemistry is great and the starting spot is secure. Jones could take a lesser deal to stay with the team which would bring admiration from fans all over.

Now, the flip side of this is pretty simple. Running backs should always get paid when they get the chance because if they don’t, it can disappear pretty quickly on them. Jones taking a major risk by taking less money and banking on a year or two years from now being even bigger. Not to mention, the Packers’ running back had injury issues in his career. If the $13-$15 million deal is there from a team like Miami, Jacksonville, New York, or somewhere else, he should take the deal. That’s a no-brainer. Get paid when you get the chance. It sucks as a fan, but I get it.

Jones coming back would be the most unexpected thing of the football season thus far, but it’s not impossible. David showed there’s a way to come back without a big salary hike. We’ll see if Jones is on board too.

Charlie.