Former Atlanta Falcons star remains a huge 2022 cap hit

Despite the fact that Julio Jones will not have suited up for the Atlanta Falcons for nearly two years Jones will still be Atlanta’s 5th highest cap hit headed into the 2022 season. The contract Atlanta gave the receiver hasn’t played out the way the team or Jones hoped it would.

Julio is now a member of the Titans and the regression he suffered during the 2021 season left him almost unrecognizable. Jones finished an injury-plagued season with 434-receiving yards and a single score.

Even when Julio was able to stay healthy he was the third option for the Titans and struggled to consistently make an impact. Whether it is age or the downgrade in the quarterback he received in Ryan Tannehill, Julio’s ability to impact the game took a huge step back.

Even though he won’t be playing for the Atlanta Falcons Julio Jones has a $15.5 million dollar dead cap hit scheduled for 2022

For one more season Atlanta will have to continue dealing with Julio Jones as one of their top five highest-paid cap hits.  As painful as this may be it was still the right move for Atlanta to move off of Julio.

While it wasn’t their choice considering Julio demanded his way out of Atlanta it was the perfect timing for the franchise. Jones doesn’t look to be the same player and Atlanta is in rebuild mode getting ready to acquire young receivers to help install Arthur Smith’s offense.

Julio Jones counting against a large part of Atlanta’s cap for one more season is worth it to move in the right direction. Allowing Atlanta to find receivers for the future and build a team around a young core moving on from players that were a part of Atlanta’s 2016 playoff run.

Julio Jones will forever be remembered as one of the best players to ever line up for the Falcons. For now, however, trading him appears to have been the perfect move for a franchise that is moving in the right direction.