Julio Jones reminds us why he’s the best receiver in the NFL

It’s the worst kept secret in the National Football League: Atlanta Falcons receiver Julio Jones is the best in the business.

Julio Jones delivered one message to the rest of the league after the Atlanta Falcons upset the San Francisco 49ers: watch the throne. (Shoutout to Kanye and Jay-Z).

Great receivers in San Francisco are nothing new. You had the likes of Jerry Rice and Terrell Owens don the uniforms of the team in the Bay Area.

And Julio Jones showed why he deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as those guys once again. Let’s paint the picture, there was no Calvin Ridley, Mohamed Sanu was traded away weeks ago, the Falcons run game is one of the worst in the league.

The 49ers defensive game plan centered- or at least should have-around stopping Julio. And they couldn’t. The next biggest threat for Atlanta was Austin Hooper and after that, Russell Gage.

The Falcons showed how much they needed Julio to perform. Out of 39 pass attempts, Matt Ryan targeted Jones 20 times. Early and often. And number 11 couldn’t be stopped.

Much was made about Julio being on the second-longest touchdown drought of his career. How did he respond? Two receiving touchdowns, including the game-winner. Not to mention 13 catches for 134 yards.

The 49ers George Kittle put up the same numbers minus the scores, but whose team won? Mr. Jones. Even when defenses are keyed on Julio from the time he begins his warm-up, he continues to perform.

Injured? It doesn’t matter. He was seen obviously limping at points in the game.

Julio Jones dazzled with ridiculous sideline catches, toe taps in the endzone, and fought through pass interference all game. A blatant jersey grab and hold wasn’t called by the refs, Julio Jones performed anyway.

And more than that, he showed up when it mattered. On the final drive, Julio pulled in catch after catch to give Atlanta even a chance to win the game.

The Falcons have a cap situation to figure out going into the next year, which could lead to some cuts of big names. But the $66 million they gave to Julio shouldn’t be questioned at all.

He’s worth every penny and showed us why on Sunday.