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With the arrival of running back Aaron Jones, the Minnesota Vikings have boasted one of the most effective offenses in the NFL in 2024.

The Vikings’ 45.5% run percentage this season ranks 13th in the NFL and is a significant improvement over 2023, when Minnesota ended in last place with 36.7% rush percentage. One reason the Vikings are riding a six-game winning streak is the improved offensive balance, which Jones has helped implement with 197 rush attempts for 893 yards and four touchdowns. The team is 11-2 so far this season.

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This offseason, many will be curious to see what the Vikings do with their running back situation in 2025 and beyond. During the offseason, Jones inked a $7 million, one-year deal. But since his signing bonus was divided up over four inactive years, he was in a great position to receive an extension.

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Nonetheless, Jones turned 30 earlier this month, and the Vikings may want to shore up their position group that is severely understocked in the upcoming draft in April.According to Bleacher Report’s Brent Sobleski, the Vikings will be keeping a watch on running back prospects. Sobleski previously mentioned Minnesota as a potential fit for Iowa Hawkeyes breakthrough star Kaleb Johnson’s scheme.

The following is his analysis on a playmaker that is familiar to football fans in Minnesota:

The running back who won the Big Ten award ran the ball 260 times for 1,242 yards in his first two years of college. With 1,537 yards and 240 carries, he had a spectacular fall. Additionally, he managed to score a touchdown in each and every game this season. As soon as he gets going, the 225-pound running back plants firmly and accelerates downhill while keeping his pads under him. He should fit in well with zone-heavy defenses that value vision and patience enough to press the hole and then burst through the openings.

At 225 pounds, Johnson is the perfect combination of youth and physicality for Minnesota’s backfield, which would be a great addition to complement Jones in 2025 and beyond.

Bigger fish are undoubtedly in the Vikings’ need. With key defensive players like Byron Murphy Jr. and Camryn Bynum on expiring contracts, general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah must address the issue of right guard. Although running back isn’t exactly high on the priority list, the team is aware of its depth problem and made the move to acquire Cam Akers in an in-season deal with Adofo-Mensah in October.

If the Vikings are able to recuperate a third-round compensation pick from Kirk Cousins’s deal with Atlanta, they may pursue Johnson on Day 2 of the draft. Johnson is presently the third-ranked running back on ESPN’s Mel Kiper’s Big Board. Despite the team’s preference for running backs with their two fifth-round picks, it would be great to get a game-changing player like Johnson as the position’s future starter.