PFF Doubles Down on Julio Jones to Colts

Wide Receiver Julio Jones still needs a home. Could it be the Indianapolis Colts?

Last month Pro Football Focus' Doug Kyed included wide receiver Julio Jones to the Indianapolis Colts in his "one move every team should make" article, and roughly three weeks later, he's doubling down.

When asked in his mail bag where the still-available Jones might end up, the Colts were the first team Kyed mentioned.

"It just makes way too much sense given the Colts’ need at wide receiver and Jones’ previous connection with new Indianapolis quarterback Matt Ryan," wrote Kyed on Friday.

Kyed's June article focused on one player for one team, but in his mail bag, he had several destinations for Jones, even as the Colts made the most sense.

"But a ton of teams still need wide receiver help," continued Kyed. "In that piece, I also had wide receivers going to the Baltimore Ravens, Chicago Bears, Green Bay Packers, Houston Texans and Tennessee Titans. The Bears have since acquired wide receiver N’Keal Harry via trade, so that helps fill a need."

"I know veteran players view the Ravens, Colts, Packers and even New England Patriots as attractive landing spots for a wide receiver."

That the Colts are viewed as a good destination for a wide receiver should come as no surprise. Indianapolis has an excellent roster with playoff aspirations, and after Michael Pittman, there are question marks at wide receiver.

The Colts have high hopes for second-round pick Alec Pierce, but he is still an untested rookie. A healthy Jones could be an excellent compliment to Pittman.

But Jones comes with questions of his own, both of which Kyed addressed in his answer regarding Jones' 2022 future.

"The biggest question in regard to Jones is how little money he’d be willing to play for," wrote Kyed, "and if teams believe he can stay healthy, because he’s played in only 19 total games over the past two seasons."

Jones earned roughly $15 million with the Titans last year, and they waived him taking a $4.8 million dead-cap hit in 2022. 

When the Atlanta Falcons dealt him, they spread his dead-cap hit across two seasons, and Jones is still costing the Falcons $15.5 million in salary-cap space this season.

Two teams have paid Jones a combined $20.3 million NOT to play for them in 2022. And by the way... Jones still carries an $8.4 million cap hit for the Titans in 2023 as part of his restructuring bonus. 

All of that wasted money by two franchises may answer one question. Jones may be willing to play for much, much less in 2022, since he's already been paid for this season by two different teams in the form of bonuses. 

But can he stay healthy? Can he ever get close to being the dominant force he was for the Falcons the first 10 years of his career?

Jones has played in just 19 games the past two seasons, but that doesn't tell the whole story of his decline. His 82 combined catches in 2020 and 2021 would be an average single season for him typically.

His 31 catches in 2021 netted just 434 yards, the lowest total and yards per catch of his career. 

Bringing in Julio Jones on a cheap, team friendly contract is still a tantalizing option if Jones can even be close to his former self.

But any financial obligation to Jones needs to be low risk. The Falcons and Titans both tried high risk / high reward and got burned by Jones.