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
Just Got to Say It!
April 28th, 2011
11:05 pm
Any idiot on this blog you thinks that JJ is not more of a NFL ready player than AJ is not very football savy. AJ is a heck of a player, but the overall packages are vastly different. JJ is going to knock very good Defensive Backs around on running plays and has done just that for three years against some of the best Defensive backs in the country. AJ skill set was amazing catches and producing some highlight reel action. However he needs to work on his other skills that account for 50% of the game, blocking. I have no doubt he will have better numbers than AJ on the recieving aspect, but the real numbers are going to be what else you bring to the table. JJ wins that hands down.
Good selection GM D.
Wish you had gone for a DB though.
The Truth
April 28th, 2011
11:06 pm
Hankerson from Miami and Baldwin from Pitt was still on the board if the falcons wanted a WR, don’t forget Young from Boise State he will be a steal
TrishaDishaWarEagle
April 28th, 2011
11:06 pm
@name one receiver that changes games in the nfl..
Having two speedy burners on WR opens up the ENTIRE offense for us. Last 2 years, everyone just continually double teams Roddy. Now if they put their 1 and 3 CB on Roddy, the fastest man on the field is single teamed, and you still have Douglas in the slot, All world Tony G at TE and it even opens up the running game as we can now stretch the field on both sides, It totally changes the offensive game even if he isn’t thrown to in the play..
Tide Rising
April 28th, 2011
11:06 pm
3 Alabama players have gone in the 1st round so far with Mark Ingram still on deck.
marcel dareus- 3rd overall pick
Julio Jones-6th overall pick
James Carpenter – 25th overall pick
Mark Ingram you’re next! Rolllllll Tide!!!!!!!
CPark
April 28th, 2011
11:07 pm
Looks like on old school Falcons flop. Nothing exciting about this pick, couldnt catch a cold. I hope our Russian GM proves Me wrong but he gave up the farm. Dumb.
P. Bull Terrier
April 28th, 2011
11:07 pm
Not that anyone asked me, but I like the move. A.J. Green or Julio Jones was exactly what the Falcons needed. I would have liked A.J. Green better, but Jones is the next best thing. There are plenty of people outside of Georgia who think Julio Jones is equal to, or better than, A.J. Green. Like many in Georgia, I’m a little biased toward Green, but that doesn’t mean I’m not impressed with Jones. Given that Jones will be playing for a Falcons team that is loaded with offensive talent, and Green will be playing for the Bengals, I’ll bet that Jones will look like the better pick for the first few seasons.
The price we paid for Jones was high, no doubt. But it didn’t really look like we were going to get a game changing DE with pick #27. One of the many DE’s available in this year’s draft might turn out to be an impact player, but settling for whichever DE is still hanging around at the bottom of the first round leaves a lot to chance.
Consider what the Falcons actually gave up for one of the best WR’s in recent drafts:
2011 1st Round Pick: There were some pretty high expectations for Kroy Biermann going into last season as a result of his development in the previous season. He may have looked better in the film room than he did from the stands, or on TV. My guess is that Falcons management wasn’t certain that any of this year’s DE’s would be much of an upgrade over Biermann. If that’s the case, we can consider Biermann the DE we would have picked at #27. Result: The Falcons lose nothing by giving up the pick.
2011 2nd Round Pick: Popular opinion had the Falcons taking a WR in the 2nd round. Obviously Jones fills the WR need better than anyone other than Green, including most of the WR’s already in the NFL. Result: Big advantage to the Falcons.
2011 4th Round Pick: You don’t go into a draft expecting your 4th round pick to be an automatic starter. In all likelyhood, the Falcons would have picked up a backup TE, OL, or LB with that pick. Maybe that player would eventually become a solid contributor or maybe he would hang around for a few years and then fade away. Either way, its unlikely that the 4th round pick would have made a big difference for the Falcons in the next couple of years. Result: Small loss for the Falcons.
2012 1st Round Pick: This is where the Falcons gambled with the move up to select Jones. If the Falcons are as good or better next season as they were this season, then the pick is a low first rounder. A lot of the best Juniors left school early to beat the expected rookie salary cap, so next year’s draft will be missing some of it’s top Senior talent. I don’t get paid to look ahead and project who will be available in the bottom of the 1st round in 2012, but Thomas Dimitroff and Mike Smith do. My guess is that they didn’t expect next year’s draft to be deep enough that they would be able to pick up a significant impact player near the end of the first round. Unless the Falcons are significantly worse than expected in 2011, or the draft pool is significantly stronger than projected, the Falcons will survive without their 1st pick next year. Result: Too early to tell.
Most people would agree that there were two almost certain impact WR’s in the draft, and the Falcons just got one of them. If things fall the way the Falcons expect, the cost might not be much more than a 2011 backup player and a low first rounder, of questionable value, next season. If you look at this trade without the Bulldog colored glasses, it could be a really great move.
kerryb
April 28th, 2011
11:07 pm
Next year we won’t have a 1st round pick. Last year the Ravens had no 1st round pick. didn’t hurt them much.
Pack fan hanging with Justin Houston?
April 28th, 2011
11:07 pm
Wow, what a dumb comment. That’s some hard core stuff you’re tokin’ at the draft…….
kerryb
April 28th, 2011
11:08 pm
The 27th pick was Jimmy Smith CB from Colorado…….yawn
The Truth
April 28th, 2011
11:10 pm
Mark Ingram is a Saints, smart move.
GTBob
April 28th, 2011
11:10 pm
Wow. We could have not made any trades and took DaQuan Bowers at 27.
The Truth
April 28th, 2011
11:11 pm
Thats how you make a deal, and the falcons need to take notes because the Saints got a big DT and a great RB in Ingram
kerryb
April 28th, 2011
11:11 pm
P. Bull Terrior, Once again, the Falcons did not give up the 27th pick in this draft. They just swapped places to 6th with Cleveland.
PMC
April 28th, 2011
11:11 pm
Saints just found their next Deuce… only Ingram is better…. sigh.
kerryb
April 28th, 2011
11:13 pm
Truth, NO has not picked Ingram
kerryb
April 28th, 2011
11:13 pm
Well, I guess they will now.
The Truth
April 28th, 2011
11:13 pm
@GT Bob I know. The Falcons could have got Bowers in the 1st, another defensive player in the 2nd and made trades for Murray from Oklahoma and Young from Boise State in the 3rd round. But we are stuck with one WR that drops passes
kerryb
April 28th, 2011
11:14 pm
Looks like the Saints will have more injured RB’s.
kerryb
April 28th, 2011
11:15 pm
Yea Truth, we could have a DE that could blow his knee out on the first play of the year.
kerryb
April 28th, 2011
11:16 pm
Murray may still be on the board in the 3rd round…..Now we have to listen to John Grudens love affair with Sean Payton.
The Truth
April 28th, 2011
11:17 pm
kerryb
April 28th, 2011
11:15 pm
Yea Truth, we could have a DE that could blow his knee out on the first play of the year.
He can’t be any worse than Peria Jerry
Jeffreyj
April 28th, 2011
11:17 pm
Sorry Falcons fans. Saints just passed u by
kerryb
April 28th, 2011
11:18 pm
I don’t believe I ever referred to my Dad as MAN and Dogg.
And the plot thickens
April 28th, 2011
11:18 pm
Saints are making some good moves, man how come we could not get a front office like that. Ingram is a bruiser.
The Truth
April 28th, 2011
11:18 pm
kerryb
April 28th, 2011
11:14 pm
Looks like the Saints will have more injured RB’s.
Ingram plays hurt and the falcons would regret no taking him because now we have to deal with him with no DEFENSE. But we do have Julio right Kerry
kerryb
April 28th, 2011
11:19 pm
Julio is what the Falcons needed. Last time I checked they already had a RB.
Who Dat Nation
April 28th, 2011
11:19 pm
Eat that Falcons ha!!! We will have your number this year while you guys are stuck with a reciever with butterfinger hands
kerryb
April 28th, 2011
11:20 pm
A proven 1000 yard rushing RB in the NFL not college.
Tide Rising
April 28th, 2011
11:20 pm
Holy Cow! 4 first round NFL draft picks including two of the first 6 picks. Mark Ingram completes the crimson domination of the 2011 draft. If you think Nick Saban is tough to recruit against now you better really watch out. Cause now when he sits in a recruit’s living room he can tell them about the 4 first round draft picks he developed. I see a 4th no. 1 rated recruiting class in 5 years under Saban yet again for 2012. The rich get richer!
Mystikal
April 28th, 2011
11:20 pm
Wow, Saints pick just made ours look really dumb
The Truth
April 28th, 2011
11:21 pm
kerryb
April 28th, 2011
11:19 pm
Julio is what the Falcons needed. Last time I checked they already had a RB.
Michael Turner is not getting any younger with every year that passes by, why not get Ingram for the future
Tripple Lindy
April 28th, 2011
11:21 pm
Phyllis from Mulga is happy.
kerryb
April 28th, 2011
11:22 pm
Tide Rising, you know what that means? Your team is gone.
when you say budweiser..
April 28th, 2011
11:22 pm
Jones will be a great weapon for MR2. Yes, all the UGA guys wanted an AJ + pothead Houston draft for the Falcons, but I think we’ll be just fine
Open Your Eyes
April 28th, 2011
11:23 pm
Man I am so sick of this Julio talk and people like kerryb are so delusional they are on Julio nutts. Man this team has more needs than just a WR man open your eyes, we are doomed.
Boom Boom
April 28th, 2011
11:23 pm
TD has a nice history of picking injury prone players…..How’s Kerry Meier doing??
Tide Rising
April 28th, 2011
11:23 pm
The truth,
Not sure what planet you live on but in Ingram’s career he only missed 2 games with a very minor knee injury and he could have played in the 2nd game if he needed to. But with Trent Richardson, Eddie Lacy and company we just didn’t need him.
Ridiculous
April 28th, 2011
11:23 pm
This trade was absurd. Give me the 5 players. He better be the next Jerry Rice.
kerryb
April 28th, 2011
11:24 pm
Truth, right now the Falcons needed an upgrade at WR to compete at the top. If we stayed at 27 and got Ingram we would not have gotten Jones. I also did not read anywhere that the Falcons were the slightest bit interested in Ingram.
oldbird
April 28th, 2011
11:24 pm
I am glad to get Julio even though we gave up way too much. Especially when you see who is still left on the draft board. N.O. just took Ingram. How nasty is their offense now? Bad trade, especially since TD finds better talent in the 4th round than the 1st.
GTBob
April 28th, 2011
11:24 pm
I think the Saints have made some good moves. Worries me a little.
Matt
April 28th, 2011
11:25 pm
Stupid move. Where did they draft jenkins? To give up this much. Ugh. This team will for the next 4-5 years be the team that almost makes the playoffs or the wild card. Saints got Ing at 27. What a steal. Defense wins in the nfl. Not a wr.
Ridiculous
April 28th, 2011
11:25 pm
“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.”
Stupid mainstream thinking. The Patriots continually trade down in the draft, stockpiling 2nd round and later picks, and beat the crap out of everybody. THAT is the attitude you want a team to have. And I HATE the stinking Patriots!
Open Your Eyes
April 28th, 2011
11:26 pm
kerryb
April 28th, 2011
11:24 pm
Truth, right now the Falcons needed an upgrade at WR to compete at the top. If we stayed at 27 and got Ingram we would not have gotten Jones. I also did not read anywhere that the Falcons were the slightest bit interested in Ingram.
Delusional fans like kerryb writes stuff like this, hey kerry? Did the Colts win the superbowl with just offense or did they improve their D
Tide Rising
April 28th, 2011
11:27 pm
kerryb,
No. Not really. We return 9 starters on D, 4 of 5 O-lineman, and a lot of people thought Ingram’s backup should have started over Ingram. Dareus is a loss but we are loaded with D-lineman so while there will be a dropoff it won’t be much. Carpenter was the only O-lineman on the 2 deep to be lost. And Julio is the only wr lost. We have 4 former highly rated 4star wrs that are all vying for Julio’s job. Same thing. There will be a dropoff but the position is so deep with highly touted recruits that we’ve been stockpiling for a couple years that we’re not worried.
kerryb
April 28th, 2011
11:27 pm
Open Your Eyes, are you really that stupid? How is a 13-3 team doomed? Everyone is focused on that Green Bay game. Last time I checked we beat them earlier in the year. They picked on a fill in corner that night and abused him and now our defense stinks. The defense actually played pretty good last year. You don’t go 13-3 with the schedule we had if they dont.
Crash
April 28th, 2011
11:27 pm
Coulda got heyward or bowers at 27. Instead we draft a receiver. THis team is run by idiots.
A.J. finished the drill by going to Cincy
April 28th, 2011
11:29 pm
At least Julio Jones had a 1,000 yard season in college.
kerryb
April 28th, 2011
11:29 pm
Tide Rising, If yo think Ingram’s backup should have started instead of him why is everyone thinking that we are doomed because the Saints got him and we didn’t?
kerryb
April 28th, 2011
11:30 pm
Crash, Bowers has knee questions. Thats why he is dropping like a ton of bricks.