It was reported a few days ago that Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones wasn’t expected to take part in organized team activities as he angles for a new deal. According to ESPN’s Vaugh McClure, it looks as though Jones is set to follow through with that plan.
Early word this morning is Julio Jones “hasn't been seen” as the Falcons have started organized team activities, as expected. Once source said “I doubt he shows up” as Jones is looking for a pay raise with three years and $34.45 million left on his deal.
Jones has yet to take part in any of the team’s voluntary offseason workouts over the past few weeks. He has also attempted to garner attention through his conspicuous use of social media. But despite Jones’ absence in voluntary workouts and social media activity, Falcons GM Thomas Dimitroff said a few weeks ago that he wasn’t overly concerned about the situation regarding his star receiver.
Jones has certainly proven that he deserves to be paid like one of the elite wideouts in the game. He’s coming off another stellar season where he had 88 catches for 1,444 yards. He’s finished with at least 1,400 receiving yards in each of the last four years, which has landed him in the top two in the league in that category for three straight years.
However, the Falcons just recently finalized a massive new deal for quarterback Matt Ryan. Afterwards, Dimitroff said that their focus now was to get new deals for left tackle Jake Matthews and defensive tackle Grady Jarrett. As good as Jones is, there might not be enough money to go around.
It remains to be seen where Jones ranks in that pecking order and whether he will get what he wants through his offseason posturing. If he doesn’t, then Jones’ holdout could potentially spill over to the mandatory portion of the offseason, starting with minicamp on June 12-14.
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