The Miami Dolphins should talk to Atlanta about Julio Jones
By Brian Miller
The Miami Dolphins are not on the media short-list of teams that could show interest in Julio Jones, or a team that needs him but they should ask.
Picking up the phone to see what the Falcons are hoping to get for the star receiver costs the Dolphins nothing but a few moments of time. If there is room to negotiate, the Dolphins should stay on the line.
Jones will enter his 11th season in the NFL this year. In his 10 previous seasons, he has 7 Pro Bowls and 2 First Team All-Pro awards. Yes, he is getting up there but probably still has a few good seasons left in him.
My trading for Jones comes with a caveat, I need to trade DeVante Parker. Sure Parker is younger than Jones but is inconsistent. Even Jones’ negatives are better than Parker’s positives.
Jones is a physical football player and is expensive. Parker plays physically and is expensive. Parker will cost the Dolphins $12.1 million against the cap this year.
I continually see fans talking about Jones’ health problems and his inability to play a full season. Through his 10 seasons, Jones has only played all 16 games, four times. Parker? Parker has one full 16 game season in his six seasons. Last year, Jones only played in nine games, Parker had two more games. In Parker’s 11 games last year, he caught 63 passes for 793 yards. In Jones’ nine games last year, he caught 68 passes for 771 yards. Parker had four TDs and Jones had three.
All things being equal, which they are not, Jones is still a better football player than Parker and while Jones may only have two or three more seasons in the NFL does anyone believe that Parker will see more than that?
At some point, Parker will start to regress but Parker regressing from where he is now, is considerable considering where Jones’ regression will be. Six seasons compared to 10. We know what we have in Parker and we know what Jones can deliver.
For me, this all comes down to the price that Atlanta wants for Jones. If we are talking first-round pick/s, not a chance. If we are talking 2nd round pick/s, probably going to pass as well. If we can start in the 3rd round and maybe end in the 4th along with Parker, I’m on the phone.
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Personally, I make the call to gauge interest and while the likelihood of them pulling the trigger is slim, the Dolphins need to look at what Parker has done for the Dolphins and decide if his future in Miami is beyond what Jones could deliver in that same timeframe.
It should be noted as well that Jones’ last Pro Bowl nod came in 2019 and his injury last year ended a run of six consecutive votes to that roster. It should also be noted that Jones has had three seasons out of 10 that he didn’t post 1,000 yards or more in a season. Parker has one year with more than 1,000 yards and that 1,200-yard season of Parkers is good enough to beat one of Jones’ 1,000-yard seasons.
Jones can’t be traded until after June 1st due to the salary cap his that Atlanta would be hit with. The Dolphins are not expected to pursue him in a deal and that is probably a good thing but it would still make sense to look into it. There is a growing belief that the Patriots will make a strong push to add him.