Death, taxes and Julio Jones: What is going on?

© Provided by Falcons Wire

All-Pro wide receiver Julio Jones apparently wants out of Atlanta — according to the recent clip from Undisputed that has shattered the world of sports. And as tough as it is to accept, there’s almost zero chance Jones plays another snap for the Falcons.

The way it transpired on television makes the situation even more confusing. Did Jones not know he was on live television, or was the entire Shannon Sharpe call planned for Julio’s benefit in an attempt to speed up trade talks? According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, Jones had requested a trade months ago, which may bring some more clarity to the Kyle Pitts pick as Atlanta likely viewed him as a band-aid to a bruise. The initial buzz around Pitts seemed to pick up late in March and context says that’s right about when Jones requested a trade.

Now, as some may argue, the Falcons front office granting Jones’ trade request actually is a sign of respect, given that they probably know they’re not in immediate playoff contention and that he’s worthy of playing for a team that is. I do, however, think something within the front office went completely wrong due to the fact that the most soft-spoken player in Falcons history is publicly disgruntled.

Now that the cat is out of the bag, the team has lost nearly all of its leverage, if Atlanta even had any to begin with. The team was reportedly seeking a first-round pick for Julio and I’d like to preface by saying they will absolutely not get one.

At this point, with Julio’s sudden public resentment, the Falcons will likely end up settling for the best offer out of the bunch and not what they had initially hoped on: an offer too good to pass up. Jones is THE cornerstone of the Atlanta Falcons and sees the writing on the wall for the franchise. While he may be soft spoken, Julio isn’t dumb. He’s a businessman. For all we know, Jones may have even told Sharpe to call him live because it seems like such a bizarre thing for one friend to do to another.

Jones also said he wants to play for a contender, but I have major question marks about the moral agenda within the Falcons front office of making sure they trade him to where he wants to go. So far, from what I’ve seen, I think they’ll take the best offer they can get.

Final projection: Traded to Las Vegas Raiders FALCONS RECEIVE: 2022 2nd-round pick, WR Bryan Edwards, DL Carl Nassib.

RAIDERS RECEIVE: WR Julio Jones, 2022 conditional 5th (if he plays less than 8 games).

MORE:

Titans, Patriots among teams with best odds to land Julio Jones

Falcons Twitter left in shambles after Julio Jones’ odd interview

Falcons sign former Titans wide receiver Tajae Sharpe

Falcons 2021 schedule: Early betting lines for each game

Report: Julio Jones requested trade, Atlanta seeking 1st-round pick