Titans admit to wasting second round pick on Julio Jones

Less than a year after trading multiple draft picks to the Falcons for Julio Jones, the Tennessee Titans are admitting defeat by releasing the wide receiver.

Julio Jones has had one of the most dominant careers by an NFL wide receiver ever. So the Titans could be forgiven for thinking he could be the piece that bolstered their Super Bowl pursuit.

In the end, the experiment was a failure.

Tennessee acknowledged that on Wednesday with news from Dianna Russini and Adam Schefter of ESPN that the team is planning to release Jones after one season.

Titans set to release Julio Jones after trade disappointment

Releasing Jones will help Tennessee in terms of the salary cap. They’ll save $9.5 million. However, they’ll still owe Jones $2 million, per Mike Garafolo.

As for the receiver, he’s now a free agent and can sign wherever he wishes. It would make sense for him to look at Super Bowl contenders who may be in need of a physically imposing pass catcher.

The Titans traded for Jones in June of 2021, sending a 2022 second-round pick and a 2023 fourth-rounder to Atlanta.

In return, they got 31 receptions, 434 yards and one touchdown out of the seven-time Pro Bowler. Instead of going to the Super Bowl, they were bounced in the first round of the playoffs by the Bengals.

Jones wasn’t the reason the Titans didn’t reach their goals this year. He had a good performance in the playoff game, catching six passes for 62 yards.

However, the trade was a cautionary tale about risk and reward. Jones was 32 years old and coming off an injury-plagued season in Atlanta in 2020. In hindsight, the cost was too high.

The Falcons will really get the last laugh if they’re able to utilize that second-round pick they got from Tennessee in a trade for Deshaun Watson.