Thomas and Saints are key for the Atlanta Falcons and Julio Jones

New Orleans Saints wide receiver Michael Thomas is the key to the extension that Julio Jones and the Atlanta Falcons are working towards.

During the 2018 off-season, Julio Jones made it clear to the Atlanta Falcons that he knew he was the best wide receiver in football and wanted a contract that reflected as such. Much to the dismay of talking heads in Atlanta and half of the fan base, the Atlanta Falcons temporarily restructured with the promise of giving him a different contract in 2019.

NFL studio host and ESPN reporter Dianna Russini reported on June 18th that the Saints and Thomas were making headway in regards to a new contract for the all-pro wide receiver. NOLA.com reported that Thomas wants to be the highest paid receiver in the National Football League and is wanting roughly 22 million a year.

Julio’s agent, Jimmy Sexton, is a patient man. The moment that news came out, there is little doubt that he informed the Falcons that the Thomas number would be the starting point for his client. As we all know in the NFL, players only stay the highest paid at their position for a few weeks before their contract is eclipsed by the next one in line.

Money and the NFL elite is never a topic well received by the working class people that buy the tickets and merchandise that pay for the money that players cannot get enough of. However, a player like Julio only comes around once in a lifetime and with him in his prime, it is important to keep him engaged and on the field.

Both the Falcons and Julio have stated multiple times that a deal will get done and neither side is worried, but I suspect that the deal will not be announced until it’s known what Thomas and the Saints have agreed to.