Atlanta Falcons: Letting Julio Jones go becomes easier with the right draft pick

There is a real reason to believe that the Atlanta Falcons could draft another wide receiver in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft.

With stars Julio Jones and Calvin Ridley, it would be tough to initially imagine the Atlanta Falcons spending another first-round pick on a wide receiver. However, with Calvin Ridley due a contract extension soon and the Falcons will be forced to trade Julio Jones as they cannot pay two wide receivers a combined $35-$40 million a season.

As we know, football offenses seem to operate better when they have multiple weapons at the receiver to distribute the ball to and there would be no reason not to keep the receiver lineage that the Falcons have had for almost 20 years now.

The Atlanta Falcons will have their choice of elite wide receivers in this draft.

Whether the Atlanta Falcons believe guys like Ja’Marr Chase, Jaylen Waddle, or the Heisman Trophy winner Devonta Smith are worthy of begin drafted in the top five, remains to be seen.

However, all three of those receivers are worthy of trading a little bit further back for. They are all speedy, shifty, quick, and highly athletic. All of them in college repeatedly showed the ability to get open and read the defenses presented to them. It is rare that a draft contains just one of those types of receivers and this draft has three of them.

All three of them bring different strengths to the table – Waddle is the best deep threat, Smith is by far the best route runner and Chase is the best at making the tough catches. These are things that the person who ultimately runs alongside Ridley is going to need in order to be successful.

Chances are the Atlanta Falcons will not draft a receiver in the first round, but should they choose to go this direction, there isn’t a wrong choice when you compare the top three receivers in this draft.