You make the call (after the fact): Was Julio Jones worth it?
If they had it to do again ... (AJC photo by Johnny Crawford)
The final bill for Julio Jones is about to come due, and already the Falcons have paid a heavy cost. Not only did they send five draft picks — last year’s Round 1 (27th overall), Round 2 (59th overall) and Round 4 (124th overall) selections, plus this year’s Round 1 (22nd overall) and Round 4 (118th overall) — to Cleveland for the right to move up and grab one wide receiver, but they have been pilloried in every corner for their flight of fancy.
(Well, not every corner. I still think it was a reasoned move to take a specific player of vast potential, but I’ll get into that soon.)
After the Falcons lost to the Giants 24-2 on a day in the Meadowlands when the offense didn’t scratch, Kerry J. Byrne of Cold Hard Football Facts laid the defeat at the feet of the Julio trade. (Not entirely sure how three rookies — only one of them who’d have been even a first-rounder, and that one only the 27th pick — would have overridden a 22-point deficit, but never mind.) Here was Byrne, writing for SI.com:
If you’re new to the Mighty CHFF, this Man Law tells us that wide receivers are nothing more than Shiny Hood Ornaments decorating the engine of NFL teams. They look all nice and flashy and they cause fans to “ooh” and “ahh.” But they don’t make the engine run any better.
And a bit more:
We knew it was a bad move the moment it happened, especially for a team that went 13-3 the year before but failed to win a single playoff game because of problems that were exposed so badly by the Packers. In fact, we issued Atlanta a D- in our Sports Illustrated draft grades. So we’re not engaging in a little revisionist history. The Shiny Hood Ornament Man Law told us it was an impending disaster the second the deal unfolded.
It’s not as if Byrne was the Lone Ranger on this. Raging consensus holds that the Falcons messed up last year’s draft and also this one, and it’s true Round 1 of 2012 — to be held next Thursday — doesn’t hold the same interest for us around here. When your NFL franchise lacks a first-round pick, all those mock drafts lose their shine. (They have the 55th overall pick, and then the 84th, and then not another until Round 5.)
Loading ...But I’m wondering. We in these parts saw a lot of Julio Jones when he played for Alabama, and we had a good long look at him last season (when he wasn’t hurt). Having seen the talent, if not yet any transforming effect on the Falcons as a team, would have you made the move? Or would you have stayed at No. 27 overall last season, kept this year’s Round 1 pick and taken no risk at all?
I’ll hang up and wait for your answers. (Oh, and there’s a poll, if you’re inclined.) I’m intrigued as to what you might say because, as noted, I’m planning a longer look at the Julio trade in a bit. And I thank you, as ever, in advance.
Here, as threatened, is my take on the whole Julio Jones issue: I thought it was a good move then and think so now.
By Mark Bradley
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372 comments Add your comment
TaterSalad
April 19th, 2012
9:39 pm
Definitely worth it. Note that Jonathan Baldwin and Greg Little were picked with 2 of the picks we traded away. Both were decent last year and should turn out pretty good. But Julio has looked like one of the most freakish WRs in the NFL. Putting him split out from Roddy gives us one of the best WR corps in the league…
That being said, the value of Julio is incredible. Remember that the draft slotting system hadn’t been in place yet (remember that lockout thing). We probably paid 1/2 what we would’ve paid a year before, and if you noticed the reaming the Redskins just took (for such an incremental move), making that same play for Julio this year would be impossible.
tfalcon
April 19th, 2012
9:42 pm
I think if he can stay healthy,yes but u have to look deeper into this to see a more complexe picture,considering that we would be picking in the mid 20s,also look at this overall draft talent it just isn’t all that great.some of us count 4 picks because we swiched 1st,how can u really count the spots that both teams trade as a pick if you do can you noy count that the browns gave 1 up
BirdDawg
April 19th, 2012
10:00 pm
The funny thing is if, after all the trade rumors, the Falcons had decided not to trade up to get Julio, and then gone out and gotten smashed 24-2, everyone would be questioning why they didn’t make a “bold” move that would’ve gotten them over them hump. Fix the problems that exist instead of playing the “what if” game. The offensive line is disgustingly overrated…let’s start there.
steven a smith
April 19th, 2012
10:16 pm
bird
April 19th, 2012
6:05 pm
The trade wasn’t that bad. The Falcons swapped 1st round picks at the last draft and gave away this years 1st. Its not like the Falcons gave away two 1st round picks., but that’s the way people try to make it sound
Great post! Now please get Coby Fleener to add another homerun hitter. This guy is faster than Jimmy Graham and Gronkowski..
Mtn Falcon
April 19th, 2012
10:41 pm
Yes Julio was worth it. Rise Up Atlanta!!!!
A True Fan
April 19th, 2012
11:58 pm
I don’t care who the player was, to trade 5 to get one player is a gamble. Green, Julio, who ever. Everyone will second guess the GM and Coach about everything when their team doesn’t do what they expect. Now if we would have made and one the SB this topic would not be discussed. I love my Falcons win or lose. Go FALCONS!!!!!!!
Columbus
April 20th, 2012
12:33 am
The jury is still out. In one way I have a problem with it and that is, what good will Jones do without the blocking to get him the deep ball? If the GM dont get Ryan some more time in the pocket, it will be a bust. At this point we dont know what would happen with some good blocking. The receiving threats WILL make it almost impossible to cover them all IF the field can be stretched. Right now, not enough time do make it work. It will be one of the biggest mistakes in Falcon draft history if they do not get better pass protection to have happen on the field what they envisioned when making the trade.
That being said, Falcons were the 4th highest scoring team in the NFL last year and the defense gave up the 6th least points….The OL was too weak to handle a good defense like the Giants though and thats when it counted….
dmr
April 20th, 2012
6:04 am
Dimitroff came from the Patriots, but did not bring the mindset, at least to this point, I would like to see. The Patriots stock pile draft picks, not trade them away. The Patriots build on the lines of scrimmage because that is where it is won and lost. The J.J. trade may prove to be like the Herschel Walker trade from Dallas years ago, except we are Minnesota in that scenario. I still say trade Roddy/Turner in a deal to get draft picks for this year or next.
My prediction is that this Falcon team will face some of the toughest qb’s in the league this season and will NOT make the playoffs. Even if they make the playoffs, this is not a team built to win the Super Bowl.
legionaire
April 20th, 2012
6:52 am
The fact that Tony Gonzalez is still your go to guy tells us that JJ is a cheetah in a run first offense. Ryan evidently is not able to air it out as other veteran qbs are thus he has to stay with the TE scheme. JJ may well be the next Jerry Rice but not on the current Falcon team. The Falcons needed something they could point to and say see we are doing everything we can to get us in the top tier. It just did not work out so no the trade up was a mistake.
BobDawg
April 20th, 2012
7:21 am
The Packers SB win “scared” all the GM’s into making moves like this. Everyone thought the Pack with their youthful team and ARodgers would dominate the next 3-4 years and TD reacted to it. Dan Reeves has always said a wide receiver takes 2-3 years to mature in the league…this guy is gonna be good if he can stay healthy.. too soon to tell right now…
KD
April 20th, 2012
7:25 am
Yes, because I think he is a much better receiver than R. White. I would like to see what he can do if he is the first option in the passing attack.
Can you imagine Julio
April 20th, 2012
7:37 am
With the SB CHAMPION NEW ORLEANS SAINTS and catching passes from Drew Bree’s vs Melted Ice? I am sure he would be much happier than with your perennial LOSER team…..just ask Curtis Lofton…lmao
Stay classy, dirty turdz…..here’s to the Saints winning it all this year and the FAILCANTS finishing at 8-8…..can I get a who dat? Thank you…
rrrs
April 20th, 2012
7:56 am
Falcons just made a trade…. JJ for 5 draft choices.
Who would support that ??? What quality could we get for him now.
Better than those we gave up I think yes.
dean
April 20th, 2012
7:59 am
I see the NOLA asshats are out early this morning.
jfreak13713
April 20th, 2012
8:04 am
Yes I would still make that trade! Who would the Falcons had gotten at pick 27 last year and pick 22 this year?? Probably not anyone as good a Jones. I’m good with the move but felt like the Falcons knowing they were not going to pick in the 1st round should have made some kind of move in free agency.
Whiskey Breath
April 20th, 2012
8:06 am
Come on Mark, you know it takes more than one season to properly evaluate the Julio move.
Thomas is one of the best evaluators, and Julio is a superior player.
He scored a lot of touchdowns. Did you run this by Jeff before you threw it out there?
I think it is fair to say Thomas can evaluate better than your idol CMR. Have you kissed him
lately?
PlanB
April 20th, 2012
8:11 am
I agree with dmr partly. Trade Turner while he has some value. Snelling and Quizz will be fine. That said, I think all our eggs are in the basket of Koetter. Not sure why we went for him when there are many good offensive minds out there. I don’t know his capabilities so I’m hoping he is good and has the mind to create some good plays for all this talent. RW, JJ, HD, TG, Quizz & Snelling (All good receivers). Without an OL, none of this works though. Don’t know why we didn’t get at least one good one in FA’s. I’m hoping TD knows what he’s doing here.
Hatfieldgeoff
April 20th, 2012
8:45 am
Falcons definitely gave up a lot for Julio, but the real problem was they did not seem to know how to use him. Mularkey finally got around to using his athletic ability 4 or 5 games into the season. But they never used him enough. They ran a slant route to Julio against Seattle that went 90 yards for a score and yet they rarely used it again all year. They should have had a better idea on how to fit his abilities into the offense, even with the lockout costing them some time.
where julio
April 20th, 2012
9:24 am
2 #1 picks, #2 pick, 2 #4 picks to get a good, not great WR??? beyond dumb—no wonder this franchise is one of the worst in the nfl.
PlanB
April 20th, 2012
9:28 am
Hatfieldgeoff – You are correct about Mularky but if Koetter isn’t an improvement we are still at square one. Koetter is Smitty’s guy but wasn’t Mularky also. It usually takes about 4 years to get rid of these guys and will be a waste of great talent if Koetter isn’t the right one. I hope he is good but we have been handed a guy right up MS’s game. Run up the middle. We excuse Koetter on the passing game because he didn’t have the QB & WR’s to work with. Is not having the talent a good reason to hire a guy. I would better trust someone that had the talent and used it wisely. Hoping for the best!!!
mehta
April 21st, 2012
1:35 am
there’s a reason some franchises are successful, big time, contending for super bowl titles. Atlanta-not in that league–with minor league management, mediocre coaches, overhyped players—things never change in this city.
Paul Lipsey
April 23rd, 2012
10:38 am
Kudos for the use of “pilloried”. You are a shrewd character Mark. Atlanta professional sports is a lot more fun with you around.