Falcons pick right time to make big move, get Julio Jones
Julio Jones will help the Falcons open up their offense after averaging nearly 15 yards per catch at Alabama.
(Originally posted: 9:13 p.m. Updated: 10:30 p.m)
FLOWERY BRANCH – Last week, I had a private conversation with a general manager (guess who?) of an NFL team (duh) about his team’s draft plans. Because of what just happened, I feel safe in concluding that the Falcons’ Thomas Dimitroff won’t mind if elements of that conversation now go on the record.
Me: “Go get A.J. Green. He’ll probably have the greatest impact of any player in the draft.”
Dimitroff: “How do you think people would react?”
Me: “More than half will love you. The rest will think you spent too much and should draft for defense. But I’m guessing you won’t do it.”
Dimitroff: “Why not?”
Me: “You won’t want to trade that much for one player. You’re conservative.”
Dimitroff: “Hah! So what you’re saying is, if I make a trade, you’ll write that you goaded me into it.”
Me: “Yeah, probably.”
We laughed, and I eventually hung up the phone believing Dimitroff would stay at 27th, at best moving up five picks for a defensive player he liked. I was wrong about Dimitroff. He’s not conservative. He rolled the dice and made a move that, while expensive, was a risk worth taking. The Falcons dealt a boatload of draft picks to Cleveland Thursday night to jump up 27th to sixth in the first round, where they took Alabama wide receiver Julio Jones.
The Falcons needed to make a splash after the January playoff beatdown by Green Bay. Sports franchises that believe they’re on the verge of something big have a window in which they feel they can make this move. This was the Falcons’ window.
“Our feeling was where we are on the draft, where we are as a team, where we are on our roster … we felt we needed to make a bold statement as far as an impact type of player,” Dimitroff said.
Dimitroff will face some criticism for sacrificing so much for an offensive player after the Packers shredded their defense in the 48-21 playoff game. But there wasn’t a defensive player in this draft, save Texas A&M linebacker Von Miller, he viewed as a difference-maker. Dimitroff’s focus has been on Green or Jones for several weeks.
“I’ve been very open about the fact that we needed to add explosiveness on the defensive side or the offensive side,” he said. “In our mind, the explosiveness we were going to get with a player like Julio outweighed what we were going to get on the defensive side. We’ll never get away from the idea that if we see something we want, we’re going to jump up and get aggressive and go after it.”
That is the attitude you want a team to have.
Dimitroff made a significant statement about the franchise’s goals and expectations. He attempted to swing a deal for a pick as high as No. 2, ostensibly to get Green. But he has known for a few days they would end up at six or seven.
The cost of moving up: steep. A No. 1, 2 and 4 this year and No. 1 and 4 next year. But Jones is a playmaker. He’s a burner. He ran a 4.39 at the NFL scouting combined despite having a fractured foot.
Alabama coach Nick Saban praised Jones, Dimitroff said: “Julio embodies what Nick coaches – hard-nosed, competes on every play, goes up for the ball, sacrifices the body and plays to the whistle.”
It doesn’t fix the defense? But it enables the Falcons to open up the offense and take over games when they couldn’t in the past.
The Falcons still have time to add pieces to the defense. But understand: It’s not like they’ve ignored building that half of the depth chart. Since taking over as general manager in 2008, Dimitroff has invested heavily first- and second-round picks and free agency on defense: Curtis Lofton, William Moore, Peria Jerry, Dunta Robinson and Sean Weatherspoon. Compare that to four early picks or acquisitions on offense: Matt Ryan, Michael Turner, Sam Baker, Tony Gonzalez.
Dimitroff and the organization, still somewhat hung over from the loss to the Packers, realize they are at the point where people are going to start focusing more on the team’s postseason results (0-2) than the regular season (33-15). “That’s what adds to some of my drive at this year’s draft,” he said.
It drove him to make a big move. It was a risk worth taking.
By Jeff Schultz
♦
Last few posts
– NFL draft: Playoff hangover driving Dimitroff, Falcons
– NFL draft: Cam Newton will succeed, Tim Tebow won’t
– Hawks need more from Joe Johnson (whether-he-likes-it-or-not)
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812 comments Add your comment
Barf
April 29th, 2011
12:42 am
I would rather take a defensive guy and take a shot at kris durham late in the draft.
ATL Sports Fan
April 29th, 2011
12:42 am
I just hope he is worth two 1st round picks.
Todd
April 29th, 2011
12:43 am
Extra weapon kerry? If you can;t get the ball there, how is that a weapon? I guess you forget that awful playoff game by matty choke
kerryb
April 29th, 2011
12:43 am
Mike, that was the best post I’ve seen on here tonight. Most of them have been completely stupid.
Falcon Bob
April 29th, 2011
12:43 am
kerryb didn’t want the falcons to take mark ingram but every team in the NFC SOUTH has a back duo instead of the falcons
Tampa has Cadillac and Blount
Carolina has Deangelo and Stewart
New Orleans has Ingram and Bush
2011
April 29th, 2011
12:44 am
Falcons 28th worst defense
8th offense
= 9-7 record or 57% winning % and no plaoffs. Bad move
TimeWillTell
April 29th, 2011
12:44 am
Hope Mike and Julio don’t get married on Sports Illustrated cover…..lol.
kerryb
April 29th, 2011
12:45 am
Todd is another negative moron. Maybe Ryan couldn’t get the ball to anyone because he had only one real WR and he was taken away. Besides, I was just telling you what Mayock said. Heck, what does he know more than you?
Red Dog 77
April 29th, 2011
12:46 am
kerryb…………Dead on tardet brother, though I like to refer to them as “bedwetters”…….no complex problem, just plain ‘ol “bedwetters”……….Regards kerryb, RED
kerryb
April 29th, 2011
12:46 am
Falcon Bob, Demarco Murray is still out there.
kerryb
April 29th, 2011
12:47 am
They are a bunch of scared shaking bedwetters. They would like to play it safe and pick some average defensive player with the 27th pick than to get bold and go for a needed playmaker.
Mike
April 29th, 2011
12:50 am
@ TimeWillTell well played, but this trade wasn’t nearly as dramatic as Ricky Williams, the Falcons still have 6 picks left in this draft. @ kerryb Thanks, I’m glad someone else isn’t overreacting…and there’s still going to be Free Agency at some point people…
Red Dog 77
April 29th, 2011
12:52 am
@ Falcon Bob………What did you say our record was against Carolina, Tampa, and N.O. last year?……….and oh Bob, where did we end up in the NFC South?………Regards, RED
Red Dog 77
April 29th, 2011
12:56 am
Damn staight………Mike, I’m wicha brother……….RED
kerryb
April 29th, 2011
12:56 am
This is to all the bedwetters saying our defense was horrible. The Falcons were 5th in the league in scoring defense. Yes, teams went up and down the field on us running but they usually did not score.
TimeWillTell
April 29th, 2011
12:56 am
What does Kerryb dream of when he takes a little Falcon snooze, does he dream of beating Saints, Bucs or the Panthers. Don’t you worry your little falcon wing, they’re gonna get you back to the Super Bowl thing……and then they’re gonna find that old mojo, and get you a Super Bowl ring. Kerryb, oh Kerryb, Kerryb, Kerryb. But if we get run over by a good defensive team….then we’re sh@t outta luck.
TimeWillTell
April 29th, 2011
12:57 am
Now I know it’s time for bed. Hangover……LOL.
kerryb
April 29th, 2011
12:59 am
All of these bedwetters forget how well our defense played last year because of one game. If a QB gets a hot hand like Rogers did in the playoffs sometimes there is not much you can do about it. Even the great Steelers defense could do nothing about it.
kerryb
April 29th, 2011
1:00 am
Time will Tell, Yea, I could tell by your posts that you were either drunk or just plain stupid.
PlusSizeModel
April 29th, 2011
1:01 am
I know this much: Julio always scared me a lot more than AJ did. He is a monster at the wide-out spot, period. You never know what all those picks we traded for him may amount to, but there’s no doubt in my mind Julio is going to be a giant as a pro.
Falcon Bob
April 29th, 2011
1:01 am
Timewilltell I am with you brother, kerryb and those other losers are idiots and are all delusional. After next season they will be like us this year, we need defense but when they figure out Cleveland has our 1st round pick, then the Fire TD chants will start
Mike
April 29th, 2011
1:02 am
Haven’t commented all night, but I love the move. We still have 6 picks, and if anyone can pull potential starters/backups with low draft picks its TD. As for next year….we haven’t got there yet!!!! Plenty of time between now and next April to get a 1st or extra 2nd round pick. Add to that, free agency hasn’t started yet. A move like this, with the other obvious need positions (DE, CB), means that Blank will most likely be taking someone to a Hawks game.
TimeWillTell
April 29th, 2011
1:03 am
Wow… you are an idiot. Hangover(the movie) Lol. You are the weakest link….goodbye.
PlusSizeModel
April 29th, 2011
1:04 am
Joe Tess Fish House
“April 28th, 2011
9:25 pm
What a hugh misteak. Flacons draft a guy with a girls name.
Mr Blanks what where U thinkin?”
How did you ever figure out how to log onto a computer?
TimeWillTell
April 29th, 2011
1:04 am
I did give you the benefit of the doubt. Guess I was wrong.
kerryb
April 29th, 2011
1:05 am
Right Mike, I don’t know why all of these idiots are so worried about next years picks? 6 picks in this draft is plenty to build on.
TimeWillTell
April 29th, 2011
1:05 am
Okay Kerryb, you got that. Move on. Can’t humor you anymore. Get back to the real posters who know you.
kerryb
April 29th, 2011
1:06 am
Time will Tell, does goodbye mean you are finally gone? Please take Negative Falcon Bob with you.
TimeWillTell
April 29th, 2011
1:07 am
By the way, just curious. What was rated higher last year, the defense or the offense?
vpdikchainey
April 29th, 2011
1:07 am
Bold move for sure. At first glance looks like we gave up alot, but if you think in terms of the 2 mid-to-late first rounders being P. Jerry and S. Weatherspoon– Or S. Baker and M. Jenkins, then maybe not such a bad move after all. At least it shows TD is not sleeping well after the Green Bay game. My only concern is that Mularkey could turn Jerry Rice and Barry Sanders into busts so there’s real concern that he’ll use Julio primarily as an outside edge blocker for 376 more hand-offs to the Burner. Or my favorite Mularkey trick play when Ice throws a quick horizontal toss to the far WR for a nice 0.03 yard gainer.
PlusSizeModel
April 29th, 2011
1:08 am
One more thing: so many morons post on these blogs that it’s downright bewildering.
TimeWillTell
April 29th, 2011
1:08 am
Goodbye was a send off to you. Guess that went over your head. Sorry.
cccc
April 29th, 2011
1:09 am
What is with every retard on this thread Julio is a beast, we are going to be amazing, we will fix our defensive problems but we got the best reciever to come along in a while , I went to Ga and love my Dawgs but come on AJ sucked this year between suspencions and not wanting to get hurt did you actualy watch him the last game balls boucing off his hands not running routes letting Ga lose a worthless bowl game. Julio Schooled AJ at the combine the falcons are set !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
oldbird
April 29th, 2011
1:10 am
I have changed my opinion, somewhat, on this trade. There is a lot of diffence in drafting 6, and 27. That said, this deal makes our offense scary next year. Assuming we do well next year, a 27 and a 32 doesn’t look too bad for a 6, as long as Dimitroff continues his late round magic. Sadly, if Julio turns out to be a real player, it will be the first first round 1 pick for TD to have done so, other than Ryan. Baker, Jerry and Weatherspoon, so far have not exactly panned out as good first round picks.
Mike
April 29th, 2011
1:11 am
Oh, one last thing. To those saying “we have up 5 picks, that’s too much, waaaah, waaah, waaaah”. Ummm, check your math, we gave up 4 picks, swapped 1st.
Also, if we had such a bad defense and would have won the Super Bowl had we beat GB, then why didn’t Pittsburgh stop them? Didn’t they have a top 5 defense? Just saying.
don
April 29th, 2011
1:12 am
Looks like Dimitroff has turned into an idiot.I thought we had a good GM.Falcons are going to regret this trade big time
TimeWillTell
April 29th, 2011
1:12 am
Oops, I thought this was a comment board, not a blog, sorry.
MaxxFalcon
April 29th, 2011
1:15 am
I’m liking the Julio pick more and more. We gave up a lot, but there is still the rest of the Draft and Free Agency to address Defense. We’re going to draft a speed RB too
oldbird
April 29th, 2011
1:16 am
cccc I think Julio is a great player and am glad to have him on the team, but we paid too much to get him. Woud you want to play the price of a 5 carat diamond to get a 3 carat? Not that we didn’t get a great player, but Cleveland, if they draft well, won this trade.
kerryb
April 29th, 2011
1:18 am
oldbird, If we end up with a receiving tandem like Reggy Wayne and Marvin Harrison that helped get the Colts to a SB wouldn’t you then say that it was well worth every pick?
One Nation Under educated
April 29th, 2011
1:22 am
I didnt know Mike Ditka was drafting for us now….
oldbird
April 29th, 2011
1:22 am
sorry about the typos, I usually proofread befor I post.
GTBob
April 29th, 2011
1:22 am
On the subject of defense, and passing defense, we were 3-4 against teams that were in the top 15 in passing offense last year. We got throttled by one of them in the playoffs and looked horrible doing it. Those teams had over 300 yds passing in 6 of those 7 games. The one game they didn’t was when Big Ben was suspended. If we don’t improve our passing defense then we will have no chance at beating these teams in the playoffs. Im not saying this as someone who dislikes the Falcons. I love the Falcons, but I would like to see them improve the areas that are most needed.
honest_abe
April 29th, 2011
1:22 am
how many sacks did “beer man” have last year? 3? i guess we can get another undersized, “hard”, worker in the later rounds and maybe he can get 3 sacks too… that’ll be 6 from one de position.
dimitroff just made one of the biggest blunders in franchise history.
what perennial contenders have you seen EVER trade away that many picks to move up to select a receiver? never. because for a guy that touches the ball MAYBE 10 times on a great day for him, it’s not justified unless he scores 20 touchdowns. and i highly doubt that’s going to happen.
kerryb
April 29th, 2011
1:23 am
Thats what the Falcons needed to get over the hump. I think TD finally realized that Jenkins was never going to be that guy to go with White and was going to do what it took to get a big time WR to go with White. Now teams can’t just put their best CB on White and try to take him out of the game. All of these people on here whining about the defense. I heard Warren Sapp (a defensive player) say that defenses don’t win championships. Defenses keep you in a game long enough for your offense to win it.
TimeWillTell
April 29th, 2011
1:24 am
No one disputes that Julio was a great college player. The transition to the NFL has yet to be seen. To give up so much based on any one player’s college career is whats being questioned. If he pans out, great. Even with that being said, the Falcons won 13 games without him. they lost because of defense, not offense. So let’s keep saying how great of a college player he was. We’ve seen a lot of great college players that just can’t make the transition to the NFL. One tweaked ankle and Falcon nation will be crying. All you have to do is be realistic, think about what was given up, to what we got(a great college player?).
oldbird
April 29th, 2011
1:24 am
Why is it that most Bulldogs get sent to NFL purgatory, AKA Cincinnati?
kerryb
April 29th, 2011
1:25 am
GTBOB, name one corner that was there at the 27th pick that was immediately going to be a shut down CB for us.
kerryb
April 29th, 2011
1:26 am
Time will Tell, you act like we gave up every pick in this draft for him. We still have 6 picks left.
One Nation Under educated
April 29th, 2011
1:27 am
Dimitroff, didnt yall read Jack & the Beanstalk up there?