Getty Julio Jones & Matt Ryan of the Atlanta Falcons.
Things have gone from bad to worse for the Atlanta Falcons. They haven’t been able to regain form since their Super Bowl disaster against the New England Patriots in 2017. They’ve finally fired head coach Dan Quinn and while they still have talent, it could be time for a rebuild.
If Atlanta is ready to reboot the whole thing, they have some very valuable trade pieces. Wide receiver Julio Jones is 31 but he’s still one of the best wide receivers in the NFL. He’s had over 1,100 receiving yards in every season he’s played in 14 games or more.
Cody Benjamin of CBS Sports suggested that the Falcons consider trading the superstar and named the Las Vegas Raiders among the potential suitors for Jones:
He’s still a seven-time Pro Bowler with killer size and instincts who could conceivably take a contender to the next level down the stretch. If teams come calling (and they should), the Falcons would be wise to listen, especially with Calvin Ridley firmly establishing himself as a longer-term star.
Benjamin believes that it would take a 2021 first-round pick and a 2022 mid- to late-round pick to land Jones.
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Is This a Trade the Raiders Could Consider?
Raiders head coach Jon Gruden has said in the past that he wants to have the best wide receivers corps in the NFL. The group has certainly improved with the addition of Henry Ruggs but it’s still not anywhere near the elite wide receivers groups in the NFL. Pairing Jones with Ruggs could give the Raiders one of the most dangerous wide receivers corps in the entire NFL.
There’s no doubt that Gruden would salivate at the idea of having a receiver like Jones. He almost did with Antonio Brown last season but that never worked out. Gruden could now try to fill that hole with Jones. After a big win against the Kansas City Chiefs, the Raiders are full-fledged playoff contenders. Adding Jones could launch them into being sleep Super Bowl contenders. Nobody can stop their offense right now. Having a player like Jones in the fold turns the offense into a top-five group in the NFL. The Raiders would have to give up a lot but Jones might just be worth it if the team thinks he gets them over the hump. The defensive struggles wouldn’t matter as much if the offense can score 40 points a game.
Raiders Recently Tried to Trade for Star RB
The reason there might some validity to the idea that the Raiders could be interested in adding a player like Jones is the fact that they recently made a run at running back Le’Veon Bell. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Raiders went so far as to express trade interest in Bell to the New York Jets before he was released. They certainly didn’t have a need at running back as Josh Jacobs is one of the better runners in the NFL. It just shows that the Raiders aren’t messing around this year.
If they had an interest in Bell, it’s hard to imagine they wouldn’t have an interest in Jones should he become available.
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