Aaron Jones status: Who will play in his place for the Packers in Week 18?

The Green Bay Packers logged a 37-10 win over the Minnesota Vikings win Week 17, clinching the No. 1 seed in the NFC in the process. They’ve ensured that the NFC playoff picture will have to run through Lambeau Field, securing home field advantage up until the Super Bowl. They’ll also enjoy that first-round bye that came along with the new 14-team playoff format the NFL introduced last season.

With just one regular season game left against the Detroit Lions in Week 18, the Packers have nothing to play for as they’ve already locked up the top spot in the NFC. Given the situation, we can expect coach Matt LaFleur to rest plenty of his usual starters in Detroit, keeping them healthy and ready to go in their first playoff game.

If the Packers do choose to rest starters, Aaron Jones would get a break and we could see guys like AJ Dillon and Patrick Taylor get a big boost on the fantasy side of things in Week 18. Dillon has been sharing time with Jones in the backfield, still staying on the fantasy radar even after Jones (knee) returned from injury. Dillon topped out this season with a 26.8 fantasy point performance in PPR leagues, back in Week 10 in their win over the Seahawks. He’s scored five receiving touchdowns this season while adding two more on the ground. An increase in playing time for Week 18 could see Dillon’s score fly again, and would be a good pickup for fantasy managers.

Patrick Taylor could also see increased involvement — he got a season-high six carries in last week’s blowout win over the Vikings and totaled 18 yards on the day. He’s only made appearances in three other games, and has a total of 36 yards this season. If he sees a bigger share of snaps and touches this week, we could see his stock rise a bit as well in Week 18.