According to Benjamin Allbright of KOA NewsRadio, the Ravens are in play for veteran wide receiver Julio Jones.
They are.
— Benjamin Allbright (@AllbrightNFL) April 28, 2021
As are the Raiders. https://t.co/5qiE4YxCK7
The Falcons have received calls regarding a potential trade for the superstar wideout, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.
The #Falcons have received calls from teams inquiring about possible trades for All-Pro WR Julio Jones, sources say. A trade could not happen for cap reasons before June 1, but teams know Atlanta’s brutal cap situation and are calling. A deal won’t happen now, but later? Maybe.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) April 26, 2021
Terry Fontenot, Atlanta’s new general manager, confirmed that they would listen to offers for Jones. However, as Rapoport pointed out, a trade for Jones is unlikely to happen until after June 1.
Trading Julio Jones after June 1st#Falcons Dead Cap
— Spotrac (@spotrac) April 26, 2021
2021: $7.75M ($15.3M saved)
2022: $15.5M ($3.7M saved)
New Team Acquires
2021: $15.3M (GTD)
2022: $11.5M ($2M GTD)
2023: $11.5Mhttps://t.co/FpLHvrSCtc pic.twitter.com/ge6cPUCkbh
According to spotrac.com, Baltimore currently has $15.8 million in estimated cap space, albeit before signing their upcoming draft class. While they do not currently have the cap space to accommodate Jones’ $15.3 million 2021 cap hit, teams around the league have repeatedly shown that the cap can be manipulated if they really want a player.
Jones, selected 11th overall in the 2011 NFL Draft by the Falcons, has spent his entire 10-year career in Atlanta. In that time, Jones has accumulated 12,896 receiving yards and 60 receiving touchdowns, and has been a first-team All-Pro twice, a second-team All-Pro three times, made seven Pro Bowls, led the NFL in receiving yards in two different seasons, and was the NFL receptions co-leader in 2015. Jones was named to the NFL 2010’s All-Decade team as well.
The future Hall-of-Famer would give Baltimore the elite No. 1 WR that they have been longing for. Jones has long been considered one of the top receivers in the NFL in any given year. While he may not be quite the same player he once was now that he is 32 years old, he would still be the best option for the Ravens at the position by a longshot.
Jones played in only nine games in 2020 due to a hamstring injury suffered earlier in the season. Despite this, he still finished with 771 receiving yards on 51 receptions.