Julio Jones Trade a Move Titans 'Needed to Make,' GM Jon Robinson Says

Tennessee Titans general manager Jon Robinson said Wednesday the blockbuster trade with the Atlanta Falcons to acquire Pro Bowl wide receiver Julio Jones was a move "we needed to make for us."

Robinson discussed the deal during an appearance on the NFL Network's Good Morning Football:

"My charge is to get as many good players on the team as possible and I'm excited about the guys we had back on the roster, the guys that we added in the offseason, but when you're able to acquire a player like Julio and can add him into the mix of our football team, what we try to do offensively, those don't come around very often. We thought it was a move that we needed to make for us. I know our fans are super stoked to have him here."

The Titans announced Sunday they had acquired Jones and a 2023 sixth-round draft pick in exchange for a 2022 second-rounder and a 2023 fourth-rounder.

That's a small price to pay if the 32-year-old University of Alabama product can help deliver the franchise it's first Super Bowl title, and that's a realistic possibility if he can return to his pre-2020 form.

Jones posted a below-his-standards 51 catches for 771 yards and three touchdowns last season because of a lingering hamstring injury that limited him to nine appearances. He'd previously topped 1,300 receiving yards in six consecutive years dating back to 2014.

Getting back to that level would give Tennessee one of the NFL's best receiving tandems when he lines up opposite A.J. Brown, who's recorded 122 catches for 2,126 yards and 19 scores through two seasons.

Add in running back Derrick Henry, who was a nightmare matchup for opposing defenses even before the prospect of trying to keep him in check with a standard seven-man box, and quarterback Ryan Tannehill and the Titans' offense looks electric on paper.

That was something else Robinson talked about on Good Morning Football:

"To have both of those guys [Jones and Brown], with [tight end] Anthony Firkser, with Josh Reynolds, with Derrick in the backfield, obviously with Ryan, we're just excited about how they're all going to complement each other, the stresses they can put on defenses and make defensive coordinators' job harder to try to game plan of those guys. I'm excited that both of those guys, as well as Josh Reynolds and Firkser and [tight end] Geoff Swaim and Derrick, are on the team, and hopefully, we can continue the trend of what we're trying to do offensively."

The Titans still have to contend with a few other high-powered offenses atop the AFC, led by the Kansas City Chiefs and Buffalo Bills, but landing Jones gives them a better chance to keep pace in those potential shootouts with the league's elite.

It's not a trade that comes without risk given Jones' injury problems last year, but Tennessee has been on the verge of title contention in recent years, and the deal shows it's all-in on the championship pursuit.