Falcons Draft Day trade recap: Julio Jones

Did the Falcons make the right decision trading up for Julio Jones?

In 2011, Atlanta Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff made the riskiest move of his tenure. 

He decided to trade up in the draft to select Julio Jones. The Falcons were selecting at pick 27 that year and Dimitroff moved up to No. six in a swap with the Cleveland Browns. 

The Falcons gave up their first-round pick that year along with their second and fourth-round picks in 2011. They gave up their first and fourth-round picks in the 2012 draft as well. With those picks, the Browns selected defensive lineman Phil Taylor, fullback Owen Marecic, and quarterback Brandon Weeden. They packaged on of the picks in 2012 to trade up for Trent Richardson. 

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, everyone knows who won that trade. Jones has been one of the best, if not the best, receivers in the game since he entered the league. For his career, he has caught 797 passes for 12,125 yards and 57 touchdowns. He has led the league in receiving twice in 2015 and 2018 with 1,871 and 1,677 yards respectively. Also, he has been selected to the Pro Bowl seven times and voted an All-Pro twice. 

The accolades and numbers are clear, and to add a nice cherry on top, none of the players Cleveland selected had any success in the NFL. Weeden was on the Texans roster in 2018 but was only active for one game. None of the other guys made it past the 2014 season. Richardson gave it a try with the American Alliance Football league, but the league didn’t last long so neither did he. 

The Falcons won the trade. However, there is a question on if they should have made the trade. The team gave up five picks for a wide receiver. While he has been extremely impactful, five picks is a lot to give up for a non-quarterback. The team made it to the Super Bowl in 2016 because of its offense, but lost because of coaching and defense. Hindsight is always 20/20 but a few more pieces could have helped the defense during that season and the game. 

Dimitroff has made five draft day trades during his tenure and this one has been the biggest and the best that he’s made without a doubt. Jones is a surefire hall of fame and will go down in the Falcons ring of honor.