Three years ago, wide receiver James Jones caught 14 touchdowns for the Green Bay Packers, more than double his total from any other season. Since then, he's (a) regressed his touchdown total with the Packers, (b) left Green Bay for Oakland as a free agent, (c) was released by both Oakland and the New York Giants since last season ended, and (d) re-signed with Green Bay last week. And it's like he never left -- Jones caught two touchdowns Sunday in the Packers' 31-12 win over the Chicago Bears.
James Jones flashes back to 2012, shows real fantasy value
The Oakland Raiders and New York Giants both released a guy who had two touchdowns in Week 1. Seems smart. We break down the fantasy implications.
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The touchdowns were two of Jones' four catches on the day (on four targets). He went for 51 yards. Randall Cobb had more catches (five, on five targets) for 38 yards and a score, and Davante Adams had the team lead in targets (eight) for four catches and 59 yards, but Jones showed the nose for touchdowns he had displayed in his earlier stint in Green Bay.
Fantasy impact: Jones isn't going to do that every week, obviously. Cobb and Adams were preferred targets for quarterback Aaron Rodgers, and Eddie Lacy will be more involved in the passing game than his two catches Sunday might indicate. All that said, Jones does seem to have a line on the end zone.
For fantasy, what Jones' presence does is confuse things. Ty Montgomery and Jeff Janis go from promising sleepers to just a couple of guys; Adams goes from a WR2 to a mid-to-low flex; Cobb becomes a WR2. Even Jones doesn't carry immense value; he might only have a couple of catches each week, and if those catches don't result in scores he won't be much help. Thanks for making a hard game harder, James.
