Brandon Jackson

This morning, Monday, May 24, live on air, Shannon Sharpe called Julio Jones and asked him about being traded out of Atlanta.

Julio declared, “I’m outta there.”

Now, discussion of this being staged or not is a different story, but I’m just going to stick with the football talk here. One of the worst kept secrets of the 2021 off-season is that Julio Jones was not going to be a Falcon in the fall. A lot of us thought he’d get traded before the draft, but that didn’t come to fruition.

Now the worst kept secret is officially out in the open, it’s time for these teams to get serious. Every single team (honestly including the Falcons) should want Julio Jones on their roster, but there only a few contenders that it makes sense for him to go to.

I’m not a cap guy, but since Taysom Hill got a fake $140 million contract, I know that any transaction in possible for an NFL team if they put their mind to it.

So with that being said, the Green Bay Packers need to be on the phone right now. Julio Jones should be the apology to Aaron Rodgers for treating him like a non-superstar quarterback. This should be them coming home with flowers and chocolate the day after having a bad argument with your partner. I understand the Packers already have weapons and Davante Adams may be the best WR in the game, but luckily, you get to put five skill position players on the field at once. I’m sure Matt LaFleur can figure out what to do with him.

The Tennessee Titans should want to make this move. They lost Corey Davis in free agency, and would be able to replace him with JULIO JONES. Their other receiver literally worships at the alter of Julio. He wore a Julio Jones jersey during warm-ups this past season. That doesn’t happen in this sport. AJ Brown would love to add Julio to this offense, and so would Ryan Tannehill and Derrick Henry. Tennessee is one of the most physical teams in football, and Julio Jones is one of the most physically gifted football players we’ve ever seen.

Bill Belichick has experience trading for a HOF-worthy WR over thirty. I don’t think Cam Newton or Mac Jones would be setting any touchdown records if Julio Jones were to become a Patriot, but it would definitely improve the ceiling of the offense instantly. The Patriots had their problems last season, but they still finished 7-9. A few more completed passes here and there could have changed that record from 7-9 to 10-6. New England is never far away from contending, and Julio would put them right back in the conversation to win their division at the very least.

Eric DeCosta and John Harbaugh should both be sitting on a private plane headed to Atlanta, and when they arrive, should go to Falcons’ GM Terry Fontenot’s office and refuse to leave until Julio Jones is a Baltimore Raven. This franchise has done everything it could to set Lamar Jackson up for success. The way they have built this team shows they have the utmost faith in Jackson. But this would be the move that would make them fully committed. Sure they signed Sammy Watkins and drafted Rashod Bateman and Tylan Wallace, but if they are truly trying to win, that doesn’t make them any better than the team they were last year. You can’t count on rookie receivers to make an impact in this way.

Lamar Jackson is a great quarterback, full stop. He can make throws and challenge defenses with his arm just as well as he can challenge them with his legs. Hollywood Brown came on at the end of last year as a receiver but it’s going to take more than that to get the Ravens over the hump. The Ravens play in the AFC, and if you haven’t noticed, the top of this conference is loaded. The Chiefs, Bills, and Browns all have great offenses you need to keep up with. Julio is a game changer, and if the Ravens want to step up, the time is now.