New Teams, New Roles: How Aaron Jones, Joe Mixon, D'Andre Swift & Tony Pollard Fared In 2024 Fantasy Football

Veteran running backs who transitioned to new teams in 2024 produced commendable fantasy results, with standout performances from Saquon Barkley, Derrick Henry, and Josh Jacobs. Additionally, Joe Mixon, Aaron Jones, Tony Pollard, and D’Andre Swift offered consistent, reliable contributions. Here’s an in-depth analysis of their respective impacts.

Aaron Jones, Minnesota Vikings

Jones was another veteran running back who switched teams in 2024. For the third time in his eight seasons, he played an entire season while setting career highs in rushing attempts (255) and rushing yards (1,138). Jones remained active catching the ball (51/408/2) with success in yards per rush (4.5) and per catch (8.0). His one weakness vs. the top-tier backs changing teams came in touchdowns (7).

Despite his success, Jones was used in a split role, leading to him being on the field for 63.2% of the Vikings’ plays. He rushed for over 100 yards in two games (19/102 and 22/106/1) and had eight outings with 20-plus touches. Minnesota helped his floor in fantasy points in PPR format by giving him five catches or more in seven matchups (Week 2 to Week 4 – 6, 6, 6 and Week 16 to Week 19 – 5, 5, 6, 6).

On the downside, Jones scored more than 25.00 fantasy points in one game (148 combined yards with one touchdown and five catches) and over 20.00 fantasy points in two other games (14/93/1 with three catches for 23 yards and 22/106/1 with three catches for 23 yards).

Over his 18 starts, Jones averaged 14.26 FPPG. His lack of explosive outcomes and touchdowns put him into a steady RB1 category, but one who wasn’t good enough to carry a fantasy team in league playoffs or championship rounds in the high-stakes market.

Joe Mixon, Houston Texans

Based on his play in eight of his first 10 games, Mixon should have ranked in the elite tier of running backs changing teams last season. He busted out of the gate with an impact showing (30/159/1 with three catches for 19 yards) but left Week 2 with an ankle issue, costing him the following three matchups.

The Texans worked him hard over his next eight games (23.4 touches per game), leading to six games with over 100 yards rushing and 11 touches). He scored over 25.00 fantasy points in four games on the year, highlighted his success in Week 7 (13/102/1 with two catches for 30 yards and a score), Week 7 (25/115/2 with two catches for nine yards), and Week 11 (20/109/3 with two catches for 44 yards).

Joe Mixon's Monday Night hat trick!

22 touches
153 total yards
3 TDs pic.twitter.com/tCD7jSjlU3
— NFL (@NFL) November 19, 2024

After his bye week, Mixon and Houston’s offense lost momentum. Mixon crushed fantasy teams over his final four starts (40/129 – 3.2 yards per rush with nine catches for 65 yards) while still having some ankle issues. In the playoffs, he posted two steady outcomes – 25/106/1 with one catch for 13 yards and 18/88/1 with two catches for 12 yards.

Mixon was a very attractive and winning running back for 11 weeks (57.9%) of his 19 possible games. His three missed games due to injuries and the demise of the Texan’s offense due to wide receiver injuries led to him not leading fantasy teams to better success late in the year. He played two fewer games than Aaron Jones but outscored him by over 20.00 fantasy points in PPR leagues.

Tony Pollard, Tennessee Titans

After signing with the Titans, Pollard set career highs in rushing attempts (260) and rushing yards (1,079) while reaching the 300-touch mark for the second consecutive season. He maintained a high floor catching the ball (41/238) even with Tajae Spears (30/224/1) active in the passing game. Unfortunately, Pollard scored only five touchdowns, making it challenging to post big fantasy games.

TONY POLLARD FIRST TD AS A TITAN!!! 🤩

📺: FOX pic.twitter.com/JsXEic5ZPa
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) September 8, 2024

He rushed for over 100 yards three times (28/128, 24/119/1, and 21/102) while reaching 100 combined yards in two other matchups (102 yards with four catches and 117 combined yards with three catches). On the downside, Pollard rushed for fewer than 50 yards in six games. A late-season ankle issue cost him Week 17.

He scored 202.70 fantasy points in PPR formats for the year, averaging 18.8 touches. Pollard goes down as another running back who changed teams last year and had success, but he was only a complementary piece to a fantasy team.

D’Andre Swift, Chicago Bears

Based on his opportunity (295 touches—career high), Swift was an eighth running back who succeeded in changing positions in 2024. He gained over 1,000 combined yards for the third time in his career. On the downside, he gained only 3.8 yards per rush (5.5 in 2022 and 4.6 in 2023).

Swift rushed for over 100 yards in only one game (18/129/1) that capped off a string of four consecutive weeks with a touchdown. The Bears struggled offensively for most of the season, leading to reaching the end zone only twice over his final 10 contests. Chicago featured him in the receiving game in Week 4 (7/72) and Week 9 (6/31).

He scored 212.5 fantasy points in PPR leagues. Swift only had help fantasy value in Week 4 (29.50), Week 5 (20.00), Week 6 (21.90), and Week 8 (18.90). Over his final seven starts, he averaged only 9.52 FPPG.

Running backs switching teams were great investments last season, but some secondary options had a lower ceiling due to struggles scoring touchdowns while playing in a bottom-tier offense. Other than Joe Mixon, they all stayed pretty much healthy for the season.

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