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We are going to see Julio Jones at Lumen Field when the Seattle Seahawks play their 2021 home opener.
Unfortunately, he’s playing for the Tennessee Titans.
ESPN’s Dianna Russini first reported that the soon to be former Atlanta Falcons wide receiver will be on his way to Nashville to play for the reigning AFC South champions. More details have since come out that Julio, who asked for a trade months ago and more recently said “I’m outta there” on live TV, will be acquired by the Titans for a 2022 second-round pick, a 2023 fourth-rounder, and the Titans even get a 2023 sixth-rounder.
The #Titans deal for Julio Jones:
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) June 6, 2021
— The #Falcons get a 2022 2nd rounder and a 2023 4th rounder.
— The #Titans get Julio Jones & a 6th rounder in 2023.
— The #Titans take on Jones’ salary of $15.3M in 2021 and the rest of the deal.
— #Falcons have $7.75M in dead money this year.
The Seahawks were among the teams in the running for Julio just based off of the report that they were in talks with Atlanta, but discussions may have never gone that far in the first place despite the betting odds skyrocketing Seattle up to the top as favorite to get one of the best receivers of his era. I also can’t imagine that the Seahawks were too interested in taking on Jones’ $15.3 million salary. Atlanta’s in a horrible cap situation so getting someone else to pay Julio is ideal for them.
In the short-term, the Seahawks will have to contend with Derrick Henry, AJ Brown, and Julio Jones when Week 2 arrives. That’s gonna be tough. Long-term you’re just happy that Julio didn’t wind up on an NFC West rival and indeed will be out of the conference entirely.
Spare a thought for Falcons fans, as their greatest ever receiver is now on his way out. Hopefully Kyle Pitts lives up to the hype.