You might have heard some scuttlebutt around Julio Jones the last couple of days. Something about him maybe being traded before much longer. If that happens, and it seems like it will, how high should expectations be for him with his new team?
Jones played in nine games a year ago, beset by hamstring problems that plagued him all season. He's 32, and maybe his body is breaking down.
But when he was on the field last year, he was one of the league's very best wide receivers. Without question.
While he played in nine games, he played fully in only six games -- the other three he left early, playing limited snaps. Here are his numbers for those six games he played throughout.
JULIO GAME LOG, 2020 | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Opp | Tgt | No | Yds | TD |
Sea. | 12 | 9 | 157 | 0 |
at Minn. | 10 | 8 | 137 | 2 |
Det. | 9 | 8 | 97 | 0 |
at Car. | 10 | 7 | 137 | 0 |
Den. | 7 | 5 | 54 | 1 |
N.O. | 10 | 6 | 94 | 0 |
Jones' per game numbers for those six contests were 7 catches for 113 yards, with half a touchdown. Projected over a full season he'd have caught 115 passes for 1,803 yards and 8 touchdowns. That would have been the 13th-best fantasy season by a wide receiver in the last 20 years.
TOP 20 WRS, 2000-2020 (PPR) | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | Player | Rec | Yds | TD | PPR |
2015 | Antonio Brown | 136 | 1834 | 11 | 392.2 |
2014 | Antonio Brown | 129 | 1698 | 14 | 391.1 |
2007 | Randy Moss | 98 | 1493 | 23 | 385.3 |
2002 | Marvin Harrison | 143 | 1722 | 11 | 384.2 |
2003 | Randy Moss | 111 | 1632 | 17 | 378.0 |
2015 | Julio Jones | 136 | 1871 | 9 | 377.1 |
2019 | Michael Thomas | 149 | 1725 | 9 | 374.6 |
2011 | Calvin Johnson | 96 | 1681 | 16 | 361.2 |
2020 | Davante Adams | 115 | 1374 | 18 | 360.4 |
2003 | Torry Holt | 117 | 1696 | 12 | 359.1 |
2001 | Marvin Harrison | 109 | 1524 | 15 | 351.7 |
2012 | Calvin Johnson | 122 | 1964 | 5 | 348.4 |
2020 | Julio Jones (proj.) | 115 | 1803 | 8 | 343.3 |
2015 | Brandon Marshall | 109 | 1502 | 14 | 343.2 |
2014 | Demaryius Thomas | 111 | 1619 | 11 | 340.9 |
2005 | Steve Smith Sr. | 103 | 1563 | 13 | 339.8 |
2002 | Hines Ward | 112 | 1329 | 12 | 339.1 |
2018 | DeAndre Hopkins | 115 | 1572 | 11 | 337.5 |
2011 | Wes Welker | 122 | 1569 | 9 | 335.9 |
2012 | Brandon Marshall | 118 | 1508 | 11 | 334.6 |
So yes, there's a hamstring/injury concern, and the team that takes him on needs to figure out how to get his contract underneath their salary cap. And the above is only six games -- you kind of want him to be available for a few more weeks of the season.
But it doesn't look like anyone should doubt what Jones, even at 32 years old, can do for an offense. He's great, and probably worth whatever a team winds up giving up for him.
--Andy Richardson