The Atlanta Falcons need a player of Julio Jones’ stature in order to reach their potential, but should fans be worried about his health?
The Atlanta Falcons rely heavily on Julio Jones. Heck, that may even be an understatement. They’ve gotten better over the years of not throwing him the ball literally every other throw, but he is still their go-to receiver. He is not only one of the best receivers in franchise history, but he has become the best receiver in the entire NFL.
That’s an extremely high standard that he’s set for himself, but it’s not one that he doesn’t already live up to year in, and year out. It appears that the only force that can stop him is the pesky injury bug.
We know that Jones played with a foot injury again last season and had it fixed since playing in the Super Bowl last February. However, this isn’t the first time that he’s had a foot injury while playing for the Atlanta Falcons.
The former Alabama Crimson Tide wide receiver missed an entire season just one year after the team went the NFC Championship Game. It also shouldn’t surprise you that the Falcons only went on to win four games that year. Needless to say, it became a train-wreck whenever Jones isn’t on the field.
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We’ve seen this team overcome a lot of adversity, but having to play without Jones is something that they haven’t quite figured out yet. Just his presence on the field opens up the passing game for his teammates that much more. That’s exactly why it concerns me whenever Jones has to miss time during the regular season, or the offseason, because of an injury to one of his feet.
That being said, it sounds as though he is doing pretty well right now. Just take a look at this quote from the Falcons’ official website:
"“You know, we’re just being smart,” Jones said. “I still get my conditioning in, I run routes, I do things, I’m in and out of the huddle, I’m in the scheme, just everything right now. Today was the first day of pads, I’ll probably do a little more tomorrow. You know, we’re just one day at a time with me. They know what I can do, we’re not here to rush anything or anything like that. But the overall goal is, obviously, to be ready to go by the start of the season.”"
I seriously hope that Jones is ready to go by the beginning of the regular season, this Atlanta offensive system isn’t built to play without him. They can survive having him miss a series here or there, but having Julio in the field is the best-case scenario for everyone associated with this Atlanta franchise.
Therefore, should Falcons fans be worried about Julio Jones’ continuous injury problems? I would say no, but if he has to miss any time this season because of an injury to his feet, I would definitely start to wonder just how long Jones is going to be able to play in this league.
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There’s no doubt on earth that he is a phenomenal football player and will be in the Hall of Fame one day. Not to mention, he could end up being the best Falcons player of all time. However, he can only do that if his body will allow him to.