Atlanta Falcons: If Dan Quinn trusts Julio Jones, you should too
By Derek Snyder
The Atlanta Falcons started their organized team activities this week without their star wide receiver, Julio Jones. That said, should fans be concerned?
It’s been a whirlwind of an offseason for Atlanta Falcons fans, as Julio Jones has kept everyone on their toes. Back in late-April, the Dirty Birds’ superstar reportedly deleted all of his Falcons-related posts on social media. Not only did that cause a minor freakout on Twitter, but it had some major sports outlets reporting the news as well.
It was later confirmed that Jones simply wanted a “fresh start” online, which subsequently quenched the social media firestorm. Still, whenever your franchise’s best player causes such a panic, it leaves fans a little skittish on the backend.
Needless to say, when it was reported Jones wouldn’t be attending the Falcons’ organized team activities this week, the freakout started once again; however, this time, Dan Quinn did his best to stop the gossip and clarify a few facts about the situation.
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Take a look at what Quinn had to say below, courtesy of the team’s official website:
"“Julio and I, we speak regularly,” Quinn said. “I was fully aware that he wasn’t going to be here for the start of the offseason program, and I was also aware that he wasn’t going to be here this past Monday. He’s in great shape, and he’s spending some time this offseason working on some of the things he has not been able to over the last offseason, due to some injuries.“I do expect him to be here certainly at the minicamp at the end of the offseason program.”"
If I were to offer some advice to Falcons fans across the globe, it would be this: if Dan Quinn trusts Julio Jones, you should too.
I understand how unsettling it is to have a player of Jones’ status to be, somewhat, keeping fans in limbo this offseason, but I honestly doubt that was ever his intent. As fans, we have to trust what his coaches and teammates are saying, which is that he’s a phenomenal teammate and competitor.
Over Jones’ seven seasons in the NFL, he has done nothing but play hard and be an even better representative for the city of Atlanta. If he’s given us every reason to trust him, why are so many people questioning him now?
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At the end of the day, Quinn knows his players better than any of us. If he believes Jones is taking care of himself away from Flowery Branch, there’s no reason to be alarmed. End of story.