Getty Images Julio Jones breaking off of a tackle.
Who says yards don’t matter in the NFL? Sure, maybe it doesn’t matter for the team’s record, but it sure does matter when it comes to fantasy football. It’s understandable for those who own stock in Atlanta Falcons wide receiver, Julio Jones to be frustrated with his lack of end zone appearances. Chances are if you selected him this year, you got him within the first round. Now, you’re probably ticked off because Julio hasn’t scored a single touchdown yet.
Okay, so what’s new? We should’ve understood last season that Julio Jones is no longer a touchdown machine. He’s a workhorse. He will get the Falcons their yards to move the ball to get to the red zone. That’s when defenses come to their senses and focus all of their attention on Julio, giving opportunities up to guys like Calvin Ridley.
Now everybody is on the Ridley hype-train, as they should be. But don’t go selling Julio Jones just yet because he hasn’t reached paydirt. This is one rare occasion where yards actually make up for lack of scores. And let me tell you something, Calvin Ridley’s touchdowns aren’t guaranteed every single week. But Julio Jones’ yards pretty much are.
Yards For Weeks
Julio Jones currently leads the NFL in receiving yards with 29 receptions for 502-yards. As of right now, he is averaging a league-high of 125-yards-per-game. Again, no touchdowns, but those yards are good enough to keep Jones’ status as a WR1 on fantasy teams. Jones still remains as a top-ten fantasy wideout, although he isn’t reaching his full potential on the stat sheets so far this season.
As the Falcons keep engaging in close shootouts with their opponents, Jones will remain a highly-valuable fantasy play. The Falcons record may not indicate how productive they have been, but that’s due to the lack of their ability to close out games with a win. But at the end of the day, none of that matters for Julio owners since he is getting his yards. And who knows? One of these weeks Julio might end up finding the end zone once or twice, doubling what he is already worth. Just be smart, and hold on to a reliable contributor on your teams.