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

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Pro Bowl wide receiver Julio Jones apparently wants out of Atlanta — according to the recent clip from Fox Sports 1’s “Undisputed” that aired today. 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 context to the selection of tight end Kyle Pitts in last month’s draft. The initial buzz around Pitts seemed to pick up late in March, and 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. However, something in 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 it even had any to begin with. The team was reportedly seeking a first-round pick for Julio, and they will absolutely not get one.

At this point, with Julio’s resentment suddenly going public, the Falcons will likely end up settling for the best offer and not what they had initially hoped for: an offer too good to pass up. Jones is the cornerstone of the 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, he 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 fifth-round pick (if he plays less than 8 games)

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