With T.Y. Hilton’s 32nd birthday coming up this year in November, adding a fellow 32-year-old wide receiver to the mix may not necessarily sound like a great idea – but the Indianapolis Colts are in a playoff-now window, and adding someone like Atlanta's Julio Jones to the mix is exactly the piece that they should take a chance on.
Going into QB Carson Wentz’s first season leading the Colts, head coach Frank Reich and his staff are working with a below-average WR staff, headlined by Hilton, Michael Pittman Jr., and Parris Campbell.
Hilton resigned this offseason after fighting through a few injury-riddled years, Pittman Jr. broke out in his rookie campaign and looks to be a solid part of the offense moving forward, and Campbell holds a ton of promise, as long as the Ohio State product can overcome the injuries that made him miss most of the 2020 regular season.
An element that slightly complicates things for the Colts is that their top two selections for 2022 are conditionally tied up in the Wentz deal with the Philadelphia Eagles. Philly received Indy’s ‘22 1st if Wentz plays at least 75 percent of the team’s offensive snaps, or plays in at least 70 percent of the team’s offensive snaps and the team makes the playoffs.
The hope obviously is that Wentz remains healthy enough for that selection going back to PHI to turn into a first-round selection, but that would obviously be unknown at the time of any deal for Jones – with that being said, here is what the Colts should offer the Atlanta Falcons if they want to go out and acquire a proven receiver.
Colts receive: WR Julio Jones & 2023 6th round pick
Falcons receive: 2023 2nd round pick, 2022 5th round pick, & RB Marlon Mack
In a potential deal that involves the New England Patriots acquiring Jones, it was thrown out there to send a running back in return to the Falcons – in this deal, Atlanta would receive a back as well, but RB Marlon Mack is probably one of the better options they could get at this point of the offseason for this price.
Coming off of an ACL tear last season, Mack lost his job to upstart Wisconsin rookie Jonathan Taylor, and with pass-catching specialist Nyheim Hines and career backup Jordan Wilkins also in Indy, a role that plays to Mack’s skill set does not look to be in cards with the Colts.
Sending Mack to the Falcons would help lessen the needed draft pick compensation that the Colts would need to send out, and it would also free up a potential cut-down scenario that would put the Colts in a tough spot.
Adding Jones to this Colts offense would immediately bump everyone currently there down a rung, but it would be for the good of the team.
Bringing in Jones would lessen Hilton’s impact in ‘21, but it would help keep him fresher by needing fewer snaps out of him. With Hilton’s health being a major concern, the 10-year veteran would be best served to take a step back in his snap counts, provided Jones is able to remain healthy as well.
For Pittman Jr., this move would help define his role more, as he could then become more of a consistent factor in main sets, with less attention being paid to him. While only hauling in 40 passes for 503 yards and a lone score, Pittman Jr. produced seven games of three-plus catches.
Both Pittman Jr. and Campbell will need to establish a rapport with Wentz early on in camps, but with Reich having helped acclimate Wentz into the league as the offensive coordinator for the Eagles from 2016-17, that should not be a problem.
The Colts seem to be a piece or two away from solidifying themselves as the every-year team to beat at the top of the AFC South division – and Jones would be a perfect addition to help push them into that category.
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