Falcons fans have one big reason to worry about Julio Jones
The Atlanta Falcons insist their relationship with Julio Jones is just fine. There is one real reason for Falcons fans to worry though.
The Atlanta Falcons insist their relationship with Julio Jones is just fine. There is one real reason for Falcons fans to worry though. It’s not the fact that the star wide receiver has elected to skip voluntary workouts with the team. It’s the person Jones has elected to spend his time working out with.
Per reports, Jones is skipping out on time with his team to work out with former NFL star Terrell Owens. Falcons GM Thomas Dimitroff claims the team is in a “great spot” with Jones even after he set social media on fire by deleting all of his profiles last week. It’s worth noting that Atlanta elected to spend a first round pick on Alabama wide receiver Calvin Ridley in the first round of the draft.
Falcons fans might prefer Jones to be sitting at home on the couch. Working out with Owens brings a lot of nightmare scenarios into play. The former Eagles and Cowboys star has never been accused of being a team-first player. If he’s in Jones’ ear, it could be bad news for Falcons fans.
The real danger is if Owens and Jones start discussing the Atlanta wideout’s current contract. Jones signed a big-money deal with the Falcons back in 2015 but the market has thoroughly surpassed it. Now Jones find himself outside the top five highest-paid receivers in the NFL.
It’s easy to imagine Owens and Jones having some interesting conversations after their intense workouts. If the subject becomes player compensation it’s almost a certainty that Owens will encourage Jones to agitate for a new contract. That has to increase the probability that Jones would consider a holdout to bring the Falcons to the negotiating table.
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Falcons fans shouldn’t panic about Julio Jones right now, but it’s still a situation they should be monitoring on a daily basis. As long as their star wide receiver is hanging out with Terrell Owens on a regular basis there’s still significant danger of strife between Jones and the Falcons.