We don’t know exactly where former All-Pro Julio Jones will suit up in 2021 but it seems pretty unlikely that he will be back with the Atlanta Falcons, as he made pretty clear earlier in the week during a cold call with Shannon Sharpe.
Of course, as soon as Jones made his comments to Sharpe, some Detroit Lions fans rushed to social media to say their team should make the Falcons a deal they cannot refuse.
According to a trade simulation piece recently put out by ESPN, the Lions were one of many teams to pass on a trade for Jones.
From ESPN:
For Lions fans, it would be a match made in heaven. Detroit certainly needs help at the position, could afford it and wants a star to draw attendance. Plus, he would be a culture fit. But it is unlikely to happen because the Lions are in the midst of a complete rebuild, and trading away valuable assets and draft capital to land an aging receiver doesn’t make sense with the direction they’re headed under the new regime.
Would it be fun to see Julio Jones in the Honolulu blue and silver? Sure. Would it make any sense for the Lions to trade from the former All-Pro in their current situation? ABSOLUTELY NOT!
Folks, regardless of what Dan Campbell or Brad Holmes have said, the Lions are in a rebuild and they know it. If they were one wide receiver away from contending for a Super Bowl, then sure, trade for Jones. But at this point, there is a better chance that the Lions get the No. 1 overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft than make the NFL Playoffs this season.
Hard pass for me.