In a surprising turn of events, Aaron Jones, previously a player for the Green Bay Packers, was cut from the team and replaced by Josh Jacobs.
This perplexing move by the Packers seemed to have taken the coach, Matt LaFleur, by complete surprise.
LaFleur, who recently spoke to the Wisconsin State Journal, admitted that the entire situation had left him somewhat taken aback.
“It kind of caught me off guard, to be honest," LaFleur confessed. "There were some other things in play, obviously with Aaron Jones, and I didn’t quite know how everything was going to go. It just happened really fast on that Monday."
Matt LaFleur: Cutting Aaron Jones, signing Josh Jacobs "caught me off guard." https://t.co/0ulbnHaG1D
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As the Packers coach, there were no indications that Jones would be exiting the team so suddenly.
LaFleur remained in the dark, despite his crucial role, leaving him blindsided by the sudden move. The departure of Jones does not appear to be wholly related to performance.
Apparently, there were other financial considerations at play, chief among them Jones" refusal to agree to a significant pay cut proposal from the Packers.
In a bid to lower their financial burden, the Packers had hoped to negotiate a leaner paycheck for Jones. However, Jones resisted, leaving the Packers with little choice but to release him.
Following his surprising exit from the Packers, Jones found a new home with the Minnesota Vikings.
With a worthy one-year, $7 million contract under his belt, Jones ended up switching loyalty to their interstate rivals.
With Jones out of the picture, the Packers moved swiftly to fill the void left by his departure.
They succeeded in that objective by luring Josh Jacobs, a talented running back, to Green Bay on an affluent four-year, $48 million contract.
"It happened really fast, so I don’t know all the details of that," LaFleur said. "I’m not involved in those types of conversations. But we were super excited [to get Jacobs]."
