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Vikings RB Aaron Jones went down with a hip injury early in the Vikings game and Ty Chandler got the opportunity to lead the backfield. He ended with 14 carries for 30 yards adding two receptions on two targets for nine years.
Vikings RB Aaron Jones is questionable to return to Sunday's game vs. the Jets with a hip injury. Jones has been trying to loosen up on the sidelines but hasn't looked good enough to re-enter. Ty Chandler is now operating as Minnesota's lead back.
Update: Jones was ruled out at halftime.
Facing his former team, Vikings RB Aaron Jones tallied 139 total yards in Week 4. He posted a season-high 26 touches.
Vikings RB Aaron Jones exploded for 148 total yards in Sunday's lopsided victory over the Texans. Jones ran for 102 yards on 19 carries and posted a 5-46-1 receiving line on 6 targets. Jones ranked second on the team in targets, receptions, and receiving yards for the game.
Vikings RB Ty Chandler edged teammate Aaron Jones 10-9 in carries for Sunday's win over the 49ers. He dramatically outproduced Jones on the ground, though, gaining 82 yards (8.2 per carry) vs. just 32 for Jones (3.6). Chandler got no receiving work, though, while Jones' 5 receptions led the team. He drew 6 targets and posted 36 receiving yards.
Vikings HC Kevin O'Connell suggested that his team might run the ball more this season than the last two. Minnesota ranked third and second in pass rate the past two years, with QB Kirk Cousins at the controls for most of that time. Now with a QB room of Sam Darnold and rookie J.J. McCarthy, it'd certainly make sense for the Vikings to lean more on the run game in 2024.
The Vikings are expected to re-sign RB Cam Akers, according to Charley Walters of the Pioneer Press. That depends, of course, on Akers passing a physical. He joined Minnesota last September but went down for the season in Week 9 with a torn left Achilles' tendon. Over his six games with the team, Akers reached 29% snap shares four times, with a high of 39% in Week 7. He worked ahead of Ty Chandler over that span but behind then-starter Alexander Mattison.
The Athletic's Alec Lewis says fans should "be keeping their eyes on" Vikings RB Ty Chandler, coming out of the team's recent minicamp. RT Brian O'Neill called Chandler one of the most explosive players on the team. "I see us having a one-two punch at running back, almost like they have in Detroit," O'Neill said, pairing Chandler with import Aaron Jones. "I don't know if that's what's happening on the offensive side, but I know that we have two true No. 1 running backs. I'd buy stock in Ty Chandler if I could." If the starting RT doesn't know how the RBs will be deployed this season, then odds are that remains a developing situation. It's worth noting that Jones -- signed immediately after the Packers released him -- turns 30 in December, has averaged 12.1 carries per game for his career, and has only reached 13.0 in a season twice across seven years.
The Vikings have agreed to a deal with former Packers RB Aaron Jones, according to The Athletic's Dianna Russini. This comes just a day after Jones' release and Green Bay's announced deal with RB Josh Jacobs. Minnesota finished last season with Ty Chandler leading the backfield, and he should still factor in a decent amount. Jones has averaged 12.1 carries per game for his career and reached 13.0 in just two of his seven seasons. But we're betting Jones will lead the Vikings in both carries and RB targets. He should be a top-24 RB across draft formats and carries upside into the top 12. Jones turned 29 in December but also closed out the season with five straight games of 108+ rushing yards (and 18+ carries in each of those). Chandler looks like an RB4 -- with handcuff upside behind a starter who has missed games in five of seven seasons. Check our updated RB rankings to see where the new teammates land.
The Vikings are releasing RB Alexander Mattison, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter. The move saves the team $3.35 million in 2024 cap space. Mattison opened last season as Minnesota's lead back but eventually lost that job to Ty Chandler. Mattison has failed to reach 4.0 yards per carry in three straight seasons now and is unlikely to find more than a No. 2 RB job on the open market. The Vikings, meanwhile, are a virtual lock to add to the backfield this offseason. The level of addition will tell us how strongly they feel about Chandler, who played well down the stretch last year. He's currently RB38 in Underdog ADP but figures to get pricier now. Chandler sits 31st among RBs in our best-ball rankings.
There was a lot of chatter entering Week 16 surrounding the potential increase in Vikings RB Ty Chandler’s workload. Sunday’s game against the Lions didn’t see the second-year back dominate in the box score (8 carries, 17 rushing yards), though there is some good news that came from the contest. Chandler did find the end zone, which salvaged his fantasy contributions to a small degree, and teammate Alexander Mattison was almost completely uninvolved (2 carries, -1 yard). It’s clear that HC Kevin Stefanski’s comments from earlier in the week proved to be truthful. Chandler has certainly become the Vikings' RB1. Fantasy managers who survived and advanced to Week 17 should be comfortable going back to Chandler in lineups. The Packers rank 23rd in run defense DVOA this season and as the 10th-best RB matchup per our adjusted fantasy points allowed. It’s a good spot for him to net low-end RB2/flex-level value.
Vikings RB Alexander Mattison (ankle) is active for today’s game vs. the Lions. He only got in a limited practice on Friday and is expected to play well behind RB Ty Chandler today. Mattison isn’t a viable fantasy starter. Chandler remains a solid RB2 in the Week 16 Rankings.
Vikings RB Alexander Mattison (ankle) is expected to play vs. the Lions today, according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero. Mattison got in just a limited practice on Friday and won't be at 100% today, Pelissero confirms. "Expect Minnesota to keep riding Ty Chandler," Pelissero adds. Mattison isn't a viable Week 16 fantasy play. His return puts just a slight dent in Chandler's Week 16 outlook.
Vikings RB Alexander Mattison (ankle) is listed as questionable for this weekend’s game vs. the Lions. He only got in a limited practice on Friday. Mattison won’t be a viable fantasy play if he ends up active on Sunday, but his return would put a slight dent in RB Ty Chandler’s projection.
On Wednesday, ESPN's Kevin Seifert reported that Vikings HC Kevin O'Connell spoke firmly about RB Ty Chandler being the team's primary back. "We're kind of building with the mindset that [Chandler] is going to be a guy we're trying to get the ball to a lot, both in the run and the pass," said O'Connell, adding that the potential availability of RB Alexander Mattison (ankle) will "be a huge bonus for the depth" at the position. It doesn't take much reading of the tea leaves to gather that Mattison has lost a grip on leading this backfield in touches whenever he returns from injury. Managers in season-long formats who picked up Chandler off of the waiver wire should be thrilled about his prospects of yielding a significant workload in Week 16 vs. the Lions, and seemingly beyond. See where Chandler lands in our latest RB rankings.
Vikings HC Kevin O'Connell said Monday that RB Ty Chandler "is absolutely a guy that is going to see a featured, featured role in our offense." Chandler gave the Vikings their best rushing performance of the season in Saturday's loss to the Bengals, ripping off 132 yards and a score on 23 carries. We'll see whether RB Alexander Mattison can make it back from his ankle injury for this weekend's game vs. the Lions, but it sounds like we should expect Chandler to lead the backfield regardless. He, of course, will be a much stronger fantasy play if Mattison remains out.
Vikings RB Alexander Mattison (ankle) is out for Saturday's game vs. the Bengals. That leaves Ty Chandler as Minnesota's lead back. This running game has been ineffective for most of the season. But Chandler leads Vikings RBs with 4.1 yards per carry and gets a Cincinnati team sitting 27th in run defense DVOA. See where Chandler sits in the Week 15 RB Rankings.
Vikings RB Alexander Mattison (ankle) did not practice on Tuesday. We're not expecting him to play vs. the Bengals on Saturday afternoon, which would leave Ty Chandler as Minnesota's lead back -- and a potential RB2 in fantasy lineups. We'll keep you updated on Mattison's status over the next few days.
Vikings RB Alexander Mattison injured his right ankle in the third quarter of Sunday's game vs. the Raiders and did not return. We should get an update on his status on Monday. If Mattison misses more time, Ty Chandler will take over as Minnesota's lead back. Week 15 brings a plus matchup vs. the Bengals.
The Vikings’ backfield got a whole lot more interesting on Sunday night. RB Alexander Mattison logged 18 carries for 81 rushing yards on 64.8% of the team’s offensive snaps vs. the Broncos. He saw a tremendous amount of work despite coming into the contest as a question mark due to sustaining a concussion in Week 10. As exciting as that is, his teammate Ty Chandler showed promise. The second-round back tallied 110 total yards on 14 touches, playing on just 31% of the Vikings’ snaps. It’s clear Chandler was the more efficient of the two, but it’s worth remembering that a decent amount of that production came on a fake punt, 31-yard run from him. Still, it’ll be worth it for fantasy managers to monitor both he and Mattison moving forward. Each player has room to thrive as the Vikings’ remaining schedule ranks as the third-easiest for RB matchups per our adjusted fantasy points allowed and will have a chance to prove who’s worthy of opportunity against a lately formidable Bears run defense in Week 12.
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