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The Kansas City Chiefs took a step to shore up their running back depth by signing free agent Ronald Jones. He had spent the first four years of his career with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after being selected in the second round of the 2018 NFL Draft. Jones has played in 55 games and has totaled 2,174 rushing yards and 18 touchdowns in his career.
2021 season statistics & fantasy finish
Rushing: Jones ran the ball 101 times for 428 yards and four touchdowns a year ago.
Receiving: With Tom Brady as his quarterback, Jones caught 10 of 13 targets for 64 additional yards.
Fantasy: Jones finished as the RB59 in half-PPR scoring formats last year with 74.2 fantasy points. He averaged only 4.9 fantasy points per game, but he was the backup to Leonard Fournette.
Chiefs offseason moves
Kansas City had a busy offseason when it came to shuffling around some chairs on the offensive side of the ball. The most noteworthy move was sending wide receiver Tyreek Hill to Miami in exchange for a package of draft picks. In turn, the organization signed JuJu Smith-Schuster and Marquez Valdes-Scantling to fill the gaps.
As far as the running back room goes, the Chiefs still have Clyde Edwards-Helaire, Jerick McKinnon and Derrick Gore on the roster.
2022 best case scenario
The best case scenario for Jones is that he not only makes the roster, but makes such an impression at training camp that he gets the starting job. This backfield will likely be pretty split between the two, but if Jones can get the majority of the touches, he has upside. The Chiefs' offense is still going to be good, and Jones can be used in a variety of ways and he could finish as a high-end RB2 if all things go his way.
2022 worst case scenario
The worst case scenario for Jones is that he doesn’t make the team. With a loaded backfield, if he doesn’t have a standout performance at camp, he could be let go ahead of Week 1. If he does make the roster, the worst case scenario is that Jones will be the backup yet again and won’t see a lot of work behind CEH. The worst case scenario is that he is completely irrelevant in fantasy football.
2022 prediction
I do think that Jones will make the roster. He should be able to standout enough in camp to at least challenge Edwards-Helaire for the starting job. Jones is a talented back that never got his footing in Tampa Bay. The Kansas City offense will still be dominant even without Hill, and I think Jones factors into it well. He should finish as a mid-range RB2 or a high-end RB3 in fantasy football this year.