By Brandon Simmons
The biggest story out of Atlanta Monday no longer seemed to be the game winning shot from Trae Young in the Hawks’ playoff game, but from another Atlanta superstar who seems to be ending their tenure. On Monday’s episode of Undisputed, Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones announced that he was leaving the team, prompting many reports of him being traded. It all started when host Shannon Sharpe decided to call Jones live on air, during a segment discussing trade rumors around the receiver:
With this revelation finally being confirmed, ESPN’s Adam Schefter provided more insight to what the Falcons are willing to do with Jones. One of the details involves not trading Jones to a NFC team but would do so with an enticing return.
Jones has been involved in trade rumors for the longest time now, but no rumor has ever shown to be close to reality. The topic came up on the show after the receiver was allegedly spotted in Dallas Cowboys gear; however, he was quick to shoot that down.
If Julio and the Falcons are on board with making a trade happen, then you can bet their phone lines are blowing up. While GM’s might be skeptical of Atlanta wanting a first round pick for Jones, it is not that steep of a price. This is someone who only played 9 games and still was 3rd on the team in receiving yards and 2nd with yards per catch. Sure, you can argue that he is aging, and it might be affecting his numbers, but at 30-years-old, he posted nearly 1400 yards, which was still 2nd in the league that season. Jones still has something left in the tank. If you pair him with a decent receiving group – preferably one with a solid or budding number one receiver – your team could be looking at a deep playoff run if not the Super Bowl.