Why it might make a lot of sense for the Falcons to ponder a Julio Jones trade
The Falcons are hurting badly for cap space.
Due to an all-in approach over the past few seasons, which didn’t result in much success and the lowered salary cap due to the COVID-19, the Falcons are going to face some extremely tough decisions.
According to OverTheCap, the Falcons currently have less than $1 million in cap space heading into this season. With nine picks in the upcoming draft, including the fourth overall selection, the Falcons currently don’t even have enough space to sign their rookie deal. Since almost all of their heavy contracts have already been restructured, they’re running out of options to create more room for themselves as they get ready for the upcoming season.
Per the MMQB’s Albert Breer, The situation is so dire that the Falcons have reportedly been taking calls on the availability of wide receiver Julio Jones. Yes, Julio Jones. All-time leader in yards per game Julio Jones. Five straight seasons of 1,400 receiving yards Julio Jones, 11.2 yards per target last season in an injured year — that Julio Jones.
The #Falcons have received calls from teams inquiring about possible trades for All-Pro WR Julio Jones, sources say. A trade could not happen for cap reasons before June 1, but teams know Atlanta’s brutal cap situation and are calling. A deal won’t happen now, but later? Maybe.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) April 26, 2021
In order for the trade to work for the Falcons, they’ll have to trade him after June 1 when his salary cap can be spread over two seasons instead of one. With a post-June 1 trade, the Falcons can save about $8 million cap space after the dead cap and cap savings are accounted for. That would give them a good start on being able to sign their rookie class.
Trading Jones also affects their cap space for next year as well. As of now, and this will change after the draft, the Falcons only have 22 players under contract for the 2022 season and they’ll still be facing a tight cap situation. Matt Ryan, Grady Jarrett, and Jake Matthews are projected to take up to half of their 2022 cap space. Trading Jones, as much as it would hurt, would be a great way to get some rookie contracts via draft picks for the 2022 NFL Draft.
Ultimately, this is a problem that was brought upon by the previous regime. Poor free agency signings, expensive extensions, and inconsistent drafting have left them in a hole. The Falcons were never as close as they thought they were to returning to the playoffs and now they’re coming off a 4-12 season with very little cap space, also known as football hell.
And it just might cost them their best player.