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Julio Jones Odds: Falcons, Colts Favorites for WR's Team in 2021 amid Trade Rumors
May 21, 2021
Wide receiver Julio Jones is favored to remain with the Atlanta Falcons for the start of the 2021 season.
DraftKings Sportsbook released odds for Jones' team to open the 2021 regular season, and the Falcons are a minus-150 favorite. They are followed by the Indianapolis Colts and Los Angeles Chargers at plus-500, the Baltimore Ravens and New England Patriots at +700 and the San Francisco 49ers and Tennessee Titans at +800.
Trade rumors have swirled around Jones for quite some time, and Jeff Schultz of The Athletic reported this week that the Falcons "would like to" trade the veteran wideout.
Schultz noted that the Falcons' desire to trade Jones stems from the fact they have only $588,018 in cap space currently.
Schultz went on to list the Colts, Chargers, Ravens, Patriots, 49ers and Titans as teams with potential interest in Jones, and all of those teams were listed behind the Falcons in DraftKings' odds.
The 32-year-old Jones is among the NFL's top wide receivers of the past decade, having earned seven trips to the Pro Bowl and two First Team All-Pro selections. He is also part of the Pro Football Hall of Fame's All-Decade team for the 2010s.
Jones is the Falcons' all-time leader in receptions (848) and receiving yardage (12,896), and his 60 touchdown catches are second only to Roddy White's 63.
The former University of Alabama standout has been quarterback Matt Ryan's favorite target throughout his career, but that may be changing.
It was Calvin Ridley who led the team in receiving last season with 90 receptions for 1,374 yards and nine touchdowns, while Jones finished with 51 grabs for 771 yards and three touchdowns, although he was limited to nine games due to injury.
Last season marked the end of Jones' streak of six consecutive seasons with at least 1,300 receiving yards.
With Ridley emerging and the selection of tight end Kyle Pitts with the No. 4 overall pick in the 2021 NFL draft, Jones is perhaps more expendable now than at any time during his career.
Any trade would primarily be financially motivated with Jones set to make $15.3 million this season, but he can still be an asset to the Falcons or any team that may trade for him.
All of the teams listed below the Falcons in DraftKings' odds have a clear need at wide receiver, and their offenses could take a significant step forward if they manage to acquire the potential future Hall of Famer.