Packers welcome back James Jones, who scores twice vs. Bears
CHICAGO — That was quite the welcome back for James Jones.
On Green Bay’s roster again for all of six days, Jones showed he’s got plenty left when playing with the right quarterback. He caught two touchdown passes, and provided a steadying calm for the surprisingly shaky Packers in their 31-23 victory over the Chicago Bears on Sunday.
The Packers are a trendy Super Bowl pick while new Bears coach John Fox has yet another reclamation project on his hands. But the victory, Green Bay’s fifth in a row in Chicago, wasn’t sealed until Clay Matthews picked off Jay Cutler with a little under 4 minutes left.
Green Bay gave up 402 yards, with Matt Forte gouging the Packers for 141 of them – 105 in the first half alone. The Packers settled for a Mason Crosby field goal after two offensive holding calls in the red zone.
Jones was one of Aaron Rodgers’ favorite targets in his first stint in Green Bay, leading the Packers with 14 touchdowns in 2012. He left after the 2013 season, signing a three-year, $10 million deal with Oakland.
But playing with a rookie, Derek Carr, isn’t quite like playing with the two-time NFL MVP, and Jones didn’t make the impact the Raiders hoped and he was cut after last season. He signed with the New York Giants over the summer, only to be cut Sept. 5.
The timing couldn’t have been better -- for Jones and the Packers.
Green Bay had been looking for options ever since Jordy Nelson tore his ACL in the preseason, a situation that became even more dire after Randall Cobb injured his shoulder.
Jones may be aging, as it’s been nicely described, but he still knows the Packers playbook. Better yet, he and Rodgers have a familiarity and comfort that can’t be taught. So it was no surprise he was in Green Bay within a day of being cut by Buffalo, signing with his old team on Monday.
And the way Jones played Sunday, it was as if he’d never left.
He hauled in a 13-yard TD in front of Bears cornerback Alan Ball to give Green Bay the 7-3 lead, briefly kneeling in the upper left corner of the end zone. Robbie Gould’s second field goal put Chicago back in the lead 13-10 at halftime, but Jones responded again.
Two plays after Davante Adams’ 25-yard catch brought Green Bay to the Chicago 5, Jones beat Ball again and strolled into the end zone for the 1-yard TD that gave the Packers the lead for good.
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