Aaron Jones took a pay cut to stay with the Vikings earlier this year, and that move is looking even sharper now.
Minnesota and the veteran running back agreed to trim his base salary for the 2026 season from $9 million to $5.5 million in order to avoid a release. At the time, the adjustment made sense after Jones’ production dipped in 2025 compared to 2024. But a new contract tweak elsewhere in the league has made the Vikings’ deal look even better.
On Thursday, NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport reported that the Saints and Alvin Kamara have agreed to revised contract terms that will drop his 2026 earnings from $11 million to $6 million.
That matters because Jones has outperformed Kamara over the last two seasons. For Minnesota, the lower number on Jones’ deal suddenly looks like a bargain when stacked against what New Orleans is now paying its own veteran back.
For fans who only follow the league casually, that comparison might come as a surprise. But the numbers back it up. Jones has been the better runner across the last two years, and even in what was viewed as a down 2025 season, he still came out ahead of Kamara in nearly every major statistical category.
The Saints may simply be paying up to keep Kamara in place, especially with Travis Etienne Jr. also in the backfield after signing with New Orleans earlier this year following four seasons with the Jacksonville Jaguars.
So when 2026 rolls around, both Jones and Kamara will be trying to prove they’re worth more than the reduced deals they accepted. Based on the last two seasons, though, Jones has the stronger case to be the better value.
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