By Sunday 
When Aaron Jones talks, you can feel the confidence. After all, he’s got reason to be fired up. In just his second game back from injury, the Minnesota Vikings running back didn’t just show up — he showed out, helping his team pull off a shocking Week 9 win over the heavily favored Detroit Lions.
And now? Jones is making sure everyone hears the message loud and clear: the Vikings aren’t to be taken lightly anymore.
“We have all the pieces that we need here in this locker room,” Jones told The Viking Age. “It’s just a matter of putting it together now… last week, I feel like we finally got back healthy. We saw it all come together.”
That’s not exactly humble, but it’s not baseless either. Minnesota’s 4–4 record suddenly looks a lot more dangerous when you realize they’ve been playing shorthanded for weeks. With Jones back in the mix — and sounding every bit like a leader ready to push — the team’s energy feels brand new.
The running back’s blunt boast to fans? Don’t get too comfortable writing this team off. The Vikings have that scrappy, quiet-fire vibe that tends to cause chaos down the stretch of a season.
Of course, Jones did take a bit of a scare in that Lions game, tweaking his shoulder. But he quickly brushed off any concern with the same steady swagger he brings to the field:
“Doing a lot better, got a lot more movement. Feeling confident about it. It’s nothing that’s going to slow me down.”
Translation: he’s not just talking the talk — he’s still ready to run through defenses.
And because the man apparently never takes a break, he’s also jumping straight into something a little more… flavorful. Jones is teaming up with HORMEL® BLACK LABEL® Bacon and Frank’s RedHot® for the #OnEverythingChallenge, where he’ll be trying out fan-submitted bacon-and-hot-sauce recipes live on Instagram.
Football and food? That’s a combo Minnesota fans can rally behind.
So while the rest of the NFC North might still be sleeping on the Vikings, Aaron Jones just made sure the alarm clock went off — loud, proud, and with a side of bacon.