Why have the Green Bay Packers been so effective in the red zone during the first 10 games of the 2019 season?
Look no further than running back Aaron Jones, who has become a red-zone scoring machine for the Packers offense.
Jones has turned 22 carries inside the 20-yard line into an NFL-high 11 touchdowns. No other player has more than nine rushing touchdowns from inside the red zone.
The efficiency of Jones’ ability to find the end zone is most impressive.
His 50 percent scoring rate in the red zone is far and away the best among primary ball-carriers in the NFL.
Compare to some notable others:
– Dalvin Cook: 9 TDs on 35 carries (25.7 percent)
– Mark Ingram: 8 TDs on 26 carries (30.8 percent)
– Christian McCaffrey: 7 TDs on 32 carries (21.9 percent)
– Josh Jacobs: 7 TDs on 32 carries (21.9 percent)
– Derrick Henry: 7 TDs on 22 carries (31.8 percent)
– Ezekiel Elliott: 6 TDs on 40 carries (15.0 percent)
– Sony Michel: 6 TDs on 29 carries (20.7 percent)
– Todd Gurley: 6 TDs on 26 carries (23.1 percent)
– Jordan Howard: 6 TDs on 22 carries (27.3 percent)
– Nick Chubb: 5 TDs on 31 carries (16.1 percent)
– David Montgomery: 5 TDs on 18 carries (27.8 percent)
– Chris Carson: 4 TDs on 31 carries (12.9 percent)
– Tevin Coleman: 4 TDs on 21 carries (19.0 percent)
– Alexander Mattison: 1 TD on 22 carries (4.5 percent)
– Leonard Fournette: 1 TD on 32 carries (3.1 percent)
The Packers are third in the NFL in touchdown percentage inside the red-zone. They’ve scored 24 touchdowns on 38 trips, good for a percentage of 68.6.
Jones scored three more red-zone touchdowns on Sunday against the Panthers. He broke a tackle of Luke Kuechly and scored from five yards out in the first quarter. He fought his way into the end zone from a yard out in the second quarter. And he burst through the second level and past a diving safety to score from 13 yards out in the third quarter.
Overall, Jones has 12 touchdowns from inside the red zone this season. His decisiveness and quickness as a runner allow him to find holes and get through cracks, and he’s much tougher in a crowd than his frame suggests.
And it isn’t just Jones who has become a red-zone monster for the Packers. Running back Jamaal Williams has turned six catches inside the 20-yard line into five touchdowns, which leads the team.
Together, Jones and Williams have 18 total touchdowns in the red zone through the first 10 games of the 2019 season. Coach Matt LaFleur has used the pair to take pressure off of Aaron Rodgers in the confined areas of the scoring area.
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