GREEN BAY, Wis. -- No contract. No tag. No Aaron Jones?

It's starting to look that way for the Green Bay Packers, and their Pro Bowl running back.

Actually, it started to look that way when general manager Brian Gutekunst picked AJ Dillon in the second round of last year's draft.

And when the 2020 season came and went without an extension for Jones.

And when Jones, frustrated by the lack of guaranteed money in the Packers' offer, changed agents.

And finally on Tuesday, when Gutekunst opted not to tag Jones -- either with the franchise or transition designation -- before the deadline to do so passed.

Green Bay is the only team in the NFL that hasn't used the tag since 2011 and while Gutekunst maintained last week that it's not against the organization's philosophy, if they didn't tag Jones then when would they ever use it?

Their salary-cap situation did not help the case for tagging Jones. As of Tuesday, they were still about $10.6 million over their projected cap. They're going to have to create cap spaces with more roster moves and restructures. But the Packers have never used the cap as a deal-breaker. If they wanted him back at the price of the tag, they could have made it work.

"We've tried to avoid that just because we think there's better ways to go about it but, at the same time, it is a tool that can be effective if you need it," Gutekunst said.

Gutekunst and the Packers still have exclusive negotiating rights with Jones -- and the rest of their free agents to be -- until Monday, when unrestricted free agents can enter into negotiations with other teams. Jones and his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, surely would listen if the Packers came back with a counter offer but at this point, they might be more inclined to see what's available on the open market.

Jones wasn't happy with the Packers' offer during the season, which would have made him among the top-five highest paid backs in terms of average per year but didn't match up in terms of guaranteed money.

The franchise tag, which would have come in at a little more than $8 million for Jones this season, seemed like it might be a viable option given that the Packers could get one more year out of Jones. But the risks that come with it -- tying up that much cap space plus the possibility that Jones would refuse to play for the tag -- weren't worth it to Gutekunst.

Now, perhaps the only way Jones would return to Green Bay is if he doesn't find what he's looking for in free agency.

By this point, Rosenhaus would have put out enough feelers to gauge the market. One prominent NFL agent with a stellar track record for predicting what players will get in free agency pegged Jones at $9 million per season. The same agent predicted a $10 million average per year for Packers All-Pro center Corey Linsley, a $5 million APY for cornerback Kevin King and $4 million for running back Jamaal Williams.

Perhaps the Packers view Williams as a better value to return in a complementary role with Dillon as the No. 1 back. Gutekunst and coach Matt LaFleur had to like what they saw from Dillon in the Week 16 game against Tennessee when he rushed for 124 yards and two touchdowns. But Dillon isn't the dynamic receiver that Jones became in LaFleur's offense.

Jones finished fourth in the NFL in rushing yards (1,104) last season despite missing two games because of a calf injury. It was his second straight 1,000-yard rushing season. He rushed for 1,084 yards and led the NFL with 19 touchdowns in 2019. Including playoffs that season, he scored 23 times, the most for a season in team history. He ranks third in rushing touchdowns (25) over the past two regular seasons and second in the league in total touchdowns (30) in that span.

"He was such an important part of our offense this year," Gutekunst said shortly after this past season. "He's a dynamic player, and he's absolutely everything we want in a professional football player -- the way he goes about his business, the way he takes care of himself, he's a great teammate. We'd certainly like to bring him back."

Now, they're down to perhaps their last chance to do so.