MINNEAPOLIS — Minnesota Vikings running back Aaron Jones appears to have avoided serious injury and is listed as "week-to-week" after leaving Sunday's game with a hip injury.
In a virtual press conference Tuesday, Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell discussed the 29-year-old running back's injury, saying he's still being evaluated and will get treatment throughout the week.
"All the early information that we've got so far, it looks like we've avoided a long-term injury," O'Connell said. "But I would classify him as really week-to-week at this point."
Jones left Sunday's game against the New York Jets in the second half after rushing for 29 yards on seven carries. He also had a 24-yard catch on third down to help extend a drive in the first quarter. Running backs Ty Chandler and Myles Gaskin, as well as fullback C.J. Ham took over rushing duties for the remainder of the game, however, there was a sizeable drop off.
Ham scored the Vikings' lone offensive touchdown, but the three combined to rush for just 42 yards on 18 carries (2.3 yards per carry). Chandler had two big gains called back on penalties, including an illegal procedure penalty that wiped away a 32-yard run, which O'Connell said hindered the ground game from ever getting into much of a flow.
"Tough to lose some quality yards, especially with the type of game it was against one of the top defenses in the NFL," O'Connell said. "I thought there were some other runs where I think if Ty can get into a flow — into a groove — maybe we find a few more yards on it, but that's all part of the process. I have a lot of confidence in Ty, really, going back to last year when he really emerged for us like he did."
Chandler rushed for 461 yards on 102 carries and three touchdowns. His best game came against the Cincinnati Bengals when he amassed 132 yards rushing on 23 carries.
This season, Jones leads the Vikings with 350 rushing yards and is second on the team in receiving yards (167), trailing only Justin Jefferson. Jones will have some additional time to recover as the Vikings enter their bye week this weekend. Vikings tight end T.J. Hockenson also returned to practice last week, so Minnesota's offense has a chance to be the healthiest its been all season if the two playmakers can recover quick enough for their game Oct. 20 against the Detroit Lions.
"He just provides such an incredible asset in the interior of our pass game," O'Connell said of Hockenson. "How he works in conjunction with our wide receivers or, maybe, Aaron Jones out of the backfield, where we could truly see the weapons that we kind of envisioned once we fully got healthy."
