Tag: A.J. Dillon

A.J. Dillon powers into end zone to give Packers 10-0 lead over Seahawks

A.J. Dillon’s grown man touchdown gave the Packers a 10-0 lead over the Seahawks in the fourth quarter on Sunday.

The first touchdown of Sunday’s showdown between the Green Bay Packers and Seattle Seahawks didn’t come until the fourth quarter, and it took a fantastic individual effort from Packers running back A.J. Dillon to make it happen.

Dillon powered through the tackle attempt of Seahawks linebacker Bobby Wagner near the goal line on 3rd-and-goal to find the end zone and give the Packers a 10-0 lead in the fourth quarter.

Dillon has 15 carries for 54 yards and a score. He did much of the heavy lifting on the scoring drive after the Packers lost Aaron Jones to a knee injury.

The Packers needed four red-zone trips to finally get into the end zone. The first three trips resulted in a missed field goal, a field goal and an interception.

Dillon’s sheer power as a runner was too much for the Seahawks to overcome in the short-yardage situation. The 247-pounder immediately ran to the stands to do a Lambeau Leap.

Can the Packers hold on with a 10-point lead against Russell Wilson and the Seahawks and finish off the team’s eighth win of the season?

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10 sleepers in fantasy football for Week 7

Need an extra boost this week? Check out 10 sleepers to play in fantasy football for Week 7.

Finding sleepers in fantasy football is essentially the name of the game. Getting value added to your lineup every week in addition to your studs is the goal of every fantasy football manager.

Actually putting that into practice is a much more difficult endeavor. We all take our shots but rarely do we truly come away with a game-changer. But that doesn’t mean we don’t continue to take our shots.

“You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take. – Wayne Gretzky” – Michael Scott.

Sleepers are even more important now with the bye-pocalypse arriving in Week 7. We’ve taken a look at the top streaming options for the week. Now, it’s time to take a look at the sleepers.

In order to qualify as a sleeper, we will be using the expert consensus rankings (ECR) from FantasyPros. Only players ranked outside of the top-12 for quarterbacks, running backs and wide receivers along with those outside the top-six tight ends (adjusted for the barren landscape) are considered.

So let’s get to it. Here are 10 sleepers in fantasy football for Week 7:

RBs Aaron Jones and A.J. Dillon are on a roll for Packers

The RB tandem of Aaron Jones and A.J. Dillon is a foundational aspect of the Packers offensive identity.

The connection between Aaron Rodgers and Davante Adams remains a major component of the Green Bay Packers offense, but another terrific tandem is carrying a heavy load for Matt LaFleur’s team, especially as of late.

Running backs Aaron Jones and A.J. Dillon are on a roll over the last three games.

In wins over the Pittsburgh Steelers and Cincinnati Bengals and Sunday’s 24-14 victory over the Chicago Bears, Jones and Dillon combined for 553 total yards and two touchdowns, including a 12-yard score from Jones on Sunday.

The two are averaging 132 rushing yards and 52 receiving yards per game over the last three.

Through six games, one thing has become clear: the tandem of Jones and Dillon is a foundational aspect of the Packers offense in 2021.

On Sunday, Dillon had a 36-yard run setting up a field goal in the first half, while Jones’ 28-yard run in the second half helped set up his fourth receiving touchdown of the young season.

The Packers are getting the ball to both backs consistently. Jones has 53 touches over the last three games, while Dillon has 39. The pair got the ball over 30 times a game in the wins over the Steelers, Bengals and Bears.

Jones and Jamaal Williams were a productive duo for years, but Dillon is a better runner and a surprisingly effective receiver. And Jones keeps getting better and better.

Feeding the ball to No. 33 and No. 28 is powering the Packers’ recent run on offense.

vs. PIT at CIN at CHI Totals
Jones, rushing 48 103 76 227
Dillon, rushing 81 30 59 170
Jones, receiving 51 6 34 91
Dillon, receiving 16 49 0 65
Totals 196 188 169 553

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It’s time for the Packers to unleash RB A.J. Dillon. Here’s why

The Packers are starting to get A.J. Dillon more involved. Here’s why he needs even more touches.

The Green Bay Packers surprised many when they selected Boston College running back A.J. Dillon with the 62nd overall pick in the 2020 NFL draft. With running backs Aaron Jones and Jamaal Williams on expiring contracts and Jones set to earn top running back money in free agency that year, it was assumed by many that Dillon was drafted to be Jones’ replacement.

Instead, the Packers re-signed Jones and made Dillon their top backup in 2021. While it still feels like Dillon was a luxury pick and the Packers would have been better off using their 2020 second-round pick to address a position of need, he at least appears ready to take on a larger role this year and has a chance to show why he was highly regarded by general manager Brian Gutekunst and the Packers scouting department.

Through the early part of his second season, Dillon has been fairly quiet. From Weeks 1-3, he was used sparingly, earning five touches against the New Orleans Saints, six touches against the Detroit Lions and eight touches against the San Francisco 49ers, while averaging 4.8 yards per carry, 3.6 yards per carry and 3.0 yards per carry in those games, respectively. The blowout loss to the Saints in Week 1 probably reduced his workload somewhat, but he still didn’t get much work the following two weeks in closer games.

In Week 4 vs. the Pittsburgh Steelers, Dillon saw a huge spike in his usage as he received 16 touches (15 carries, 1 reception) compared to Jones’ 18. The former second-round pick made the most of his increased opportunities, compiling 97 total yards (81 rushing, 16 receiving). Dillon showed off his trademark power and contact balance, burst on a 25-yard breakaway run and averaged a robust 5.4 yards per carry. The offensive line did a good job of getting push and opening up holes, but Dillon did well to create yards after contact. For Week 4’s performance, Dillon was Pro Football Focus’ second-highest graded Packers offensive player, trailing only Randall Cobb (90.5) with an 84.8 game grade. In Week 5 against the Cincinnati Bengals, Dillon carried the ball eight times for 30 yards (3.8 YPC). He also had four receptions, 49 receiving yards and his first-career receiving touchdown.

So far this year, the Packers’ running game is off to a slow start. Part of that is due to offensive line injuries, but for an organization that has invested so much in their running backs and for an offense that is predicated on running to set up the passing game, this will need to improve.

After four weeks, the Packers ranked 24th in rushing yards per game with 92.5, tied for 24th in yards per carry with 3.6 and tied for 16th in rushing attempts with 104. Starting running back Aaron Jones averaged 3.7 yards per carry through the first four games, a far cry from his 5.5 season average in 2020. With starting left guard Elgton Jenkins potentially returning this week, the Packers could get a much-needed boost in the run game.

Regardless of who is blocking up front, the Packers need to get Dillon more involved in the offense going forward. When given a sizable workload against the Titans last year and Steelers and Bengals this year, he’s shown he can do some damage. He might not be the receiving threat that Jones is, but he’s looked comfortable as an outlet receiver this year and his ability to wear defenses down over the course of a game should be taken advantage of.

After all, he was a second-round pick. He should be able to contribute in a significant role in Year 2. Even with Jones as the lead back, the Packers should strive to get Dillon 10-15 touches each week depending on flow of the game and his effectiveness. If Weeks 4 and 5 were signs of what’s to come, he’s ready to handle a much larger workload.

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Packers RB A.J. Dillon shows reliable hands in win over Bengals

The Packers second-year running back caught four passes, including his first career receiving touchdown, during Sunday’s win in Cincinnati.

While Sunday’s 25-22 win in overtime wasn’t the prettiest affair for the Packers, there was at least one interesting storyline, the emergence of second-year running back A.J. Dillon’s pass-catching ability.

Dillon rushed for just 30 yards on eight carries (3.8-yard average), but he made up for it by snagging four receptions for 49 yards and a touchdown. Dillon finished the day as the Packers’ second-leading receiver.

The four-catch affair today almost matched his season total prior to today (five catches).

On Dillon’s touchdown reception, he lined up in the gun on Rodgers’ left side. At the snap, he leaked to the flat and up the sideline, where Rodgers found him wide open. Rodgers left the ball a little high, but Dillon adjusted and took it up the sideline for the score. While it wasn’t a “wow” play by any stretch, it did show Dillon’s comfort in catching the ball. For a man of his size, he showed good hands and body control. Sometimes backs look unnatural catching the ball or rely too much on “body catching.” Not the case for Dillon.

When Dillon was drafted out of Boston College, the selection drew criticism because, many believe, there just isn’t enough positional value for a Derrick Henry-type power back.

Here’s Pro Football Focus:

Oh boy. A.J. Dillon was the first player drafted who wasn’t even on PFF’s Big Board. It wasn’t because we forgot about him or that he wasn’t good in college, but it was simply because his skill set is anachronistic for today’s NFL.

Dillon is a bruising power-back who harks back to an era of smashmouth football that has largely been left in the past. Even the most run-heavy offenses in the NFL at the moment rely on speed and space more than they do a 250-pound running back pushing the pile up the middle. There is a big danger that Dillon is a re-run of Leonard Fournette in terms of a player who dominated smaller college competition but just doesn’t have the skill set to do the same thing against NFL defenders

While Dillon certainly possesses some unicorn traits a la Henry, he’s already starting to – if he hasn’t already – prove the evaluators who thought he didn’t have reliable hands out of the backfield. Not only does he appear to have reliable hands, but he also looks like he’s a natural pass catcher.

The Packers have two multi-skilled backs. We know what Aaron Jones can do. It’ll be interesting to see how LaFleur and offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett work in their 2020 second-rounder moving forward.

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Packers get on the board vs. Bengals with A.J. Dillon’s first career receiving TD

The Packers got on the board with a 12-yard touchdown pass from Aaron Rodgers to A.J. Dillon on Sunday in Cincinnati.

A.J. Dillon’s first receiving touchdown got the Green Bay Packers on the scoreboard in the second quarter of Sunday’s showdown with the Cincinnati Bengals.

The Green Bay Packers running back caught a pass in the flat and rumbled into the end zone from 12 yards out to score his first touchdown in the NFL as a receiver. Mason Crosby missed the extra point, making the score 7-6 in favor of the Bengals.

Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers was red-hot on the drive, completing all six passes for 73 yards. His 34-yard completion to Davante Adams on 3rd-and-12 got the drive rolling.

The Packers went 75 yards in seven plays on the scoring march.

The touchdown pass from Rodgers tied him with Philip Rivers for the fifth-most of all-time at 421.

The score the third of Dillon’s career overall. He has three touches for 14 total yards so far on Sunday.

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Packers teammate pays off bet on Clemson-BC game with Amari Rodgers

Former Clemson and current Green Bay Packers rookie receiver Amari Rodgers has made bets on a couple of Clemson games with two of his Packers teammates this season. Rodgers lost a bet on the Clemson-Georgia game with Packers 2021 first-round draft …

Former Clemson and current Green Bay Packers rookie receiver Amari Rodgers has made bets on a couple of Clemson games with two of his Packers teammates this season.

Rodgers lost a bet on the Clemson-Georgia game with Packers 2021 first-round draft pick and former UGA cornerback Eric Stokes, so Rodgers bought Stokes a Louis Vuitton travel bag and backpack as part of their bet after the Bulldogs defeated the Tigers, 10-3, on Sept. 4 in Charlotte.

However, Rodgers came out on the right end of a bet on the Clemson-Boston College game with former BC and current Packers running back A.J. Dillon, with the Tigers defeating the Eagles 19-13 last Saturday at Death Valley.

Rodgers posted the following video of Dillon paying off their bet by wearing Clemson gear provided by Rodgers in the Packers locker room:

Clemson Variety & Frame is doing their part to help bring you some classic new barware and help one of the local businesses that helps make Clemson special.

Order your Nick’s barware and do your part to help.  #SaveNicks

How big will A.J. Dillon’s workload be against the Saints?

A prediction for the workload of Packers RB A.J. Dillion in Week 1 against the Saints.

Green Bay Packers running back A.J. Dillon recently proposed to his girlfriend, Gabrielle Toonen. Dillon’s 2021 season is already off to a good start without playing a single down, but at least 10 carries should be doable for the 2020 second-round pick in Sunday’s season opener to celebrate an important life event.

What do you say, Matt LaFleur? Will you reward Dillon after he spent most of his rookie season on the bench? Last year, Dillon did not play a single offensive snap in the Packers’ Week 3 meeting against the New Orleans Saints. However, that is bound to change Sunday when they face the Saints in Jacksonville.

Green Bay’s head coach is a strong believer in the running back by committee approach. That means Packers fans should expect to see Aaron Jones and Dillon on the field Sunday against New Orleans. Everyone knows Jones is the primary back, but what does that mean for Dillon, who is now the primary backup with Jamaal Williams no longer in the picture? Maybe looking at LaFleur’s two last two season openers will give us a better idea.

In 2019, Green Bay faced the Chicago Bears in LaFleur’s first game at the helm. The offense came out sputtering and gained a grand total of 213 yards on 57 plays. Jones led the ground attack with 13 carries for 39 yards. Williams, meanwhile, rushed the ball five times but failed to pick up even a single yard.

Luckily, the second time around went a little differently. The Packers’ offense was humming against the Minnesota Vikings to start the 2020 season- finishing with over 500 yards and 43 points. The ground attack was also much better as Jones finished with a team-high 16 carries for 66 yards. Williams wasn’t even the second-leading rusher with seven carries for 21 yards. It was Tyler Ervin who managed to pick up 38 yards on just three carries.

When the offense is clicking, LaFleur has no problem letting an assortment of backs carry the football. However, when things are stagnant, those touches can be hard to come by.

The key for Dillon is to make the most of his snaps early in the game. Jones will be the first running back on the field, but Dillon should get at least a series during the first half. A couple of big runs would set him up for a much bigger day and possibly make double-digits carries a reachable number.

Don’t expect Dillon to rush for 124 yards and two touchdowns like he did last season against the Tennessee Titans – this won’t be that type of game. However, a decent helping of carries could augment a strong start for Dillon in Year 2.

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Fantasy football: What to expect if Jordan Love starts in 2021

The fantasy implications on Green Bay’s offense without Aaron Rodgers.

Nobody knows what Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers plans on doing in 2021 other than Aaron Rodgers, and he has steadfastly refused to provide clarity on the situation.

It also seems that the Packers have no intention of trading him, affording the reigning MVP two choices: 1) sit out, accrue fines, forfeit salary and signing bonus money, and miss his age-37 season, or 2) report, say everything was overblown and that he’s looking forward to the season.

For the sake of argument, let’s say he goes with the first option, thrusting Jordan Love into the QB1 chair, and project what the ripple effect could look like.

QB Jordan Love

Perhaps the only thing more mysterious than Rodgers’ intentions is Love’s development after the 2020 preseason was cancelled and the rookie spent all 18 games inactive. Green Bay’s desire to mend fences with Rodgers has been viewed by some as an indictment of what Love has shown behind closed doors, but that’s pure speculation.

While scouting is an inexact science, it’s worth remembering that heading into last year’s draft Love was viewed as a rising prospect with elite arm strength. The knock, however, was that Love was raw, and he gained little experience behind Rodgers and Tim Boyle.

We should know a lot more about Love by the end of camp. Unless he looks completely lost, there would be some late-round backup appeal with him running a QB-friendly system in a talented offense.

RB Aaron Jones

Saddled with durability concerns early in his career, Jones has appeared in 30 of 32 games over the past two seasons, averaging 17.8 touches, 100.6 yards and 1 TD per contest. Jones is more big-play threat than grinder — he topped 20 touches in a game just once last year — and even if the Packers featured the ground attack with Love, don’t expect a major uptick in usage.

At 5-foot-9, 208 pounds, Jones isn’t a big back, and the team values his explosiveness. Defenses won’t fear Love the way they fear Rodgers, but it would remain fair to still consider Jones a borderline top-10 RB.

RB A.J. Dillon

Another 2020 pick taken with an eye on the future, Dillon steps into the RB2 role previously filled by Jamaal Williams. The 247-pounder played sparingly as a rookie, in part because he missed a month-plus after contracting COVID-19, but his work in Week 16 against Tennessee (21 carries, 124 yards, 2 TDs) opened some eyes.

If the Packers want to keep Jones’ workload largely status quo, Dillon could be the biggest beneficiary of a Love-led offense, creating top-30 value at the position.

WR Davante Adams

Adams is unique among Green Bay’s pass catchers in that he’s experienced life without Rodgers, posting a 46-543-5 line in eight games with Brett Hundley in 2017; that combo developed some real chemistry with Adams averaging 6.4 catches, 84.8 yards and 0.8 TDs per game over his final five, which equates to a 102-1,357-13 pace.

While I’d never suggest Adams would be more productive sans Rodgers, he’s about as airtight as it gets given his exceptional route running and ability to work anywhere on the field. Add in the extra incentive of a contract year, and gamers should be dissuaded to drop Adams out of the top five receivers, provided a current contract squabble doesn’t turn ugly.

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WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling

Like Adams, MVS is entering a contract year. Unlike Adams, Valdes-Scantling is all over the place, looking like a WR2 one week and practice squader the next. His speed is legit, and he was arguably their best player in the NFC Championship Game, which could serve as a springboard.

Love’s deep-ball accuracy is one of many unknowns, though, and the already inconsistent MVS figures to be even more unreliable without Rodgers. He’d be late-round material, at best, even in the deepest of leagues.

WR Amari Rodgers

On paper, Rodgers looks like a nice fit for Green Bay’s offense, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see him utilized in Tyler Ervin’s role from last season with a lot of pre-snap motion. That could position him as a safety valve for Love, who would be encouraged to make safer, high-percentage throws as he gains experience. How much fantasy appeal that would generate is debatable, which leaves Rodgers as a watch-list candidate outside of dynasty leagues.

TE Robert Tonyan

After combining for 14 receptions during his first two seasons, Tonyan emerged last year with a 52-586-11 line. Despite that, the jury remains out with many crediting the heretofore unknown’s success to No. 12’s brilliance.

It’s also worth noting that even during his breakout season, Tonyan rarely went for big yardage, topping 40 yards just five times and leaving his red-zone exploits as the primary source of his fantasy appeal. The Packers were historically efficient in the “gold zone” under Rodgers, and there’s no way Love would be able to match that success. That pushes Tonyan out of TE1 territory.

Expanded role could mean Year 2 breakout for Packers RB A.J. Dillon

Examining why second-year RB A.J. Dillon could be a breakout candidate for the Packers in 2021.

Second-string running back Jamaal Williams was a key contributor to the Packers’ backfield rotation the last two seasons, logging 418 offensive snaps and 150 touches in 2020 and 373 offensive snaps and 146 touches in 2019, per Pro Football Reference.

With Williams now in Detroit, second-year running back A.J. Dillon is the top backup to Aaron Jones.

To get an idea of what to expect from Dillon in 2021, let’s take a look back at his rookie season:

Dillon’s rookie season revisited

When the Packers selected Dillon with the 62nd pick in the 2020 NFL draft, many were anticipating a larger workload for the rookie running back. Last year, the second-round pick saw the field on 97 offensive snaps or 9% of offensive plays. With a limited workload, he was quite effective, averaging 5.3 yards per carry on 46 attempts. In 10 of the 11 games Dillon played in last year, he totaled five carries or fewer. His breakout performance came in Week 16 vs. the Tennessee Titans when he rushed for 124 yards and two touchdowns on 21 carries.

Why he might break out

In a small sample size, Dillon flashed impressive power and contact balance, as well as solid vision and patience. He was rarely brought down by first contact and consistently churned out tough yards. For a big back, he looked surprisingly nimble. Last year, Dillon didn’t get many chances to showcase his long speed – his longest run was only 30 yards – but his college film and 4.53 40-yard dash time show that he has it in his toolbelt. If given more carries and opportunities to get his 247-pound frame moving downhill in a hurry, he could rip off many more explosive runs.

Head coach Matt LaFleur has shown he’s willing to carve out a sizable role for his No. 2 running back, as evidenced by Williams’ 40% offensive snap count last year and 35% figure the year before. Losing Williams means 150 touches and 418 offensive snaps need to be replaced. Dillon’s only real competition for carries off the bench will probably come from seventh-round rookie Kylin Hill, so he should have plenty of opportunities to showcase why the Packers felt he was worth a second-round pick.

Why he might not break out

What remains an uncertainty is Dillon’s ability to contribute in third-and-medium and third-and-long situations. Williams was a good pass blocker and a capable receiver out of the backfield. Those were big reasons why he was able to get on the field for over one-third of the Packers’ offensive snaps the last two years. We don’t know that Dillon can provide comparable third-down value because we haven’t seen it.

Dillon caught just two passes for 21 yards last season and didn’t see much third-down work. He has the frame and temperament to excel as a pass blocker, but wasn’t asked to do it much as a rookie. In college, he was seldom used as a receiver as well. Jones is very effective near the goal line, so that could cap Dillon’s short-yardage utility a little bit. Despite all those factors, he should still get plenty of rotational work to keep Jones fresh. If Dillon can add significant value on third down, he could see the field on something like 40% of offensive plays even with Jones starting.