Getty Jon Gruden & Mike Mayock of the Las Vegas Raiders.
Superstar wide receiver Julio Jones is officially on the market. The current Atlanta Falcon answered a call from Shannon Sharpe during Fox Sports’ Undisputed and revealed on live TV that he’s not planning on returning to the team. It was also revealed by NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport that Jones requested a trade “a few months ago,” which was not knowledge that was made public until Monday.
It appears that it’s just a matter of time before he is traded. The Falcons are just waiting until June 1st to help with the salary cap. The Las Vegas Raiders are a team that could use a star wide receiver. They’ve been linked to Jones in the past but Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer recently reported that the team has been “quiet” on the Jones front. Despite that report, oddsmakers believe the Raiders are in play. Draft Kings Sportsbook has Las Vegas tied as the team with the sixth-highest odds to trade for the superstar.
Odds for where Julio Jones will be playing next season 👀
(via @DKSportsbook)
William Hills Sportbook is even higher on the idea of the Raiders making the trade. They give the silver and black the second-best odds to land Jones.
At the end of the day, odds don’t mean a deal is imminent but there’s certainly some level of confidence the Raiders will make the deal.
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Raiders Insider Doesn’t Believe Team Makes the Deal
There’s no doubt Jon Gruden is at least entertaining the idea of trading for Jones. He already traded for one aging superstar wide receiver in Antonio Brown back in 2019. That deal obviously didn’t work out but Jones is very different and doesn’t bring off-the-field concerns. However, Vic Tafur of The Athletic isn’t convinced the Raiders make a move for a couple of reasons.
“There are two good reasons why Gruden will pass,” Tafur wrote. “One, making Jones fit under the salary cap would be tricky. And more importantly, Gruden is said to be quite enamored of the Raiders’ depth at receiver, including a shiny new diamond in the rough that was smuggled in among their undrafted free-agent signings.”
The Raiders aren’t terrible at wide receiver if Henry Ruggs and Bryan Edwards improve. That said, they could be putting a ton of trust in two unproven players. Jones is a future Hall of Famer and still very productive.
How Much Should Raiders Give up for Jones?
If this was five years ago, Jones would easily be worth multiple first-round picks. He’s simply one of the best wide receivers to ever play. However, he’s 32-years-old right now and only played in nine games last season due to injury. He doesn’t have an extensive injury history but it has to be a concern considering his age.
The most the Raiders should give up for Jones in a trade is a second-round pick. He’s not worth a first-round pick at this stage of his career. He’s also got a massive contract, which makes it difficult to acquire him this late in the offseason. The Falcons will likely try to get a first-round pick for the seven-time Pro Bowler but the Raiders won’t give up that much.
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