GREEN BAY – Home was in that locker room. Emanuel Wilson felt it the day he signed with the Packers as an undrafted rookie running back in May 2023.
It was a comfortable environment, where coaches preached culture and camaraderie amidst competition. Perhaps nobody on Green Bay's roster better exemplified those virtues than the man leading the backfield room: Aaron Jones.
"Just studying his game, the way he practiced, the way he approached it," Wilson said, "he always told me to keep my head up, keep pushing and be myself."
Jones, who returns to Lambeau Field this Sunday as a member of the Minnesota Vikings, etched his name all over the Packers' record book during his seven seasons in Green Bay. No matter how brightly his star shined, the team's two-time Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year nominee remained an open book.
If Wilson didn't know an answer in the classroom, Jones would whisper to the rookie, "You got this." He'd talk the young running back through missed assignments in practice, reminding Wilson to stay confident even if coaches were getting on him.
Jones was there for the triumphs, too. When Wilson ran for an 80-yard touchdown on the 14th anniversary of his father's passing during a preseason game in Cincinnati, Jones pulled Wilson over on the sideline to tell him his dad would be proud.
"When I scored that first one, he said, 'That's for your dad,'" Wilson said. "I didn't know he lost his dad, either. We had great conversations about that."
Coincidentally, Wilson discovered last year that he and Jones were related through marriage. It was actually Wilson's brother who realized the two Virigina-based families share a mutual cousin.
For those reasons and many more, Sunday's matchup between the Packers and Vikings hits Wilson squarely in the feels and he's not alone.
In preparation for his return to Green Bay, Jones published a lengthy "thank you" letter to the Packers organization and their fans in a Players Tribune piece on Wednesday morning.
In it, the 29-year-old running back expressed his gratitude for how the Packers took a chance on him as a fifth-round pick out of UTEP in 2017 and helping him grow as a player and a man.
Jones also thanked Head Coach Matt LaFleur, General Manager Brian Gutekunst and running backs coach Ben Sirmans for their support after his father, Alvin Jones Sr., passed away in April 2023 due to complications from COVID-19.
"At the funeral, I honestly couldn't believe it, Coach LaFleur flew all the way down to Texas," Jones wrote. "Brian Gutekunst and Ben Sirmans also flew down. To say they didn't have to do that is an understatement … and I know I could never repay them on a football field. So I'll just say, 'Thank you.'"
Jones and the Packers parted company in March, as the 5-foot-9, 208-pound running back finished his run in Green Bay as the franchise's third all-time leading rusher with 5,940 yards.
The Packers signed All-Pro Josh Jacobs to lead their backfield while Jones joined the Minnesota Vikings. Both running backs are off to strong starts with their new teams – Jacobs ranks sixth in the NFL with 278 rushing yards while Jones is 10th with 228.
Jones choosing to stay in the NFC North made a matchup with the Packers inevitable and the stakes have only risen during Minnesota's 3-0 start to the 2024 campaign.
"I think everybody in this building respects not only the football player, but more importantly the person that he is," LaFleur said. "There's a lot of love for him. We are going to have to hit the pause button for about a three-hour window on Sunday and then pick it back up.
"It's no different than when I go against my brother (Mike). You've got to shut it off for a period of time and then you can hug them after the game and tell them you love 'em."
It's a unique situation for the Packers' defense to be thrust into. Defensive lineman Kenny Clark lined up against Jones for seven years on the practice field but has never been charged with dragging the nimble running back to the ground.
That changes on Sunday when Green Bay must find a way to contain Jones, who's coming off a 19-carry, 102-yard day in the Vikings' 34-7 romp of the Houston Texans last Sunday.
"He has great vision. He's gonna do a good job at finding creases within the defense," Clark said. "We gotta get after him, for sure. I already know he's gonna be juiced up. We gonna be juiced up, too, though. I'm excited about it."
You didn't have to be former teammates with Jones to realize how special he is. New Packers safety Xavier McKinney has studied the film and sees the same enigmatic playmaker whom Green Bay centered its ground game on for the last five years.
If defenders aren't careful, Jones won't just make you miss – he can embarrass you with his ability to instantly change direction at a moment's notice.
"Playing against him, watching him play, I know he's a one-of-one type of guy," McKinney said. "We've just got to be prepared to make sure that we're always getting to the ball and always making sure that it's not just one person tackling him but it's 11."
Although Green Bay must stop the Pro Bowl running back it helped create, Jones also did plenty to help develop the next generation of Packers playmakers with which Minnesota much contend.
Wilson is one of them. During Sunday's 30-14 win in Tennessee, the 5-foot-11, 226-pound running back produced 85 total yards and scored his first NFL touchdown on a 30-yard screen pass from Malik Willis. He told reporters on Wednesday he plans to send the ball to his grandmother, Dacota Wade.
Wilson attributes much of his growth to Jones, specifically mentioning the veteran running back's speed and explosiveness. Both areas were core emphases for Wilson this offseason.
As much as Wilson respects Jones as a mentor, both running backs have a job to do Sunday. But wherever Wilson's career goes, he'll always feel a debt of gratitude to Jones for helping him acclimate to life in the NFL.
"Just being in the meeting room with him was amazing. Just how smart he is and the way he can read (film) and look at it," Wilson said. "Man, I miss the guy. I can't wait to see him."
