For the third time in as many years, wide receiver Julio Jones will be playing with a different team. Is he ready to bounce back from an up-and-down season?
You could make a case that of all eight reigning division champions, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers had this year’s best offseason.
From quarterback Tom Brady ending a very brief retirement to some key signings and acute drafting by general manager Jason Licht, the Bucs appear to be in line to defend their NFC South title.
Earlier this week, Brady got a new target in seven-time Pro Bowler and two-time All-Pro wide receiver Julio Jones. He had been on the open market for months after being released by the Tennessee Titans earlier this year.
And that was likely due to the fact that he’s missed a combined 14 regular-season contests the past two years with the Falcons (2020) and Titans (2021).
A year ago, he was sent by the Falcons to Nashville via trade but he wound up playing in only 11 total contests (including postseason) for Mike Vrabel’s club.
All told, Jones has managed just 82 catches for 1,205 yards and four scores the past two years combined with Atlanta and Tennessee in a combined 19 regular-season outings.
The positive here is that Jones did return last season for not only Tennessee’s final regular-season game but the club’s playoff clash with the Bengals. At Houston in Week 18, the 11-year pro was targeted a season-high nine times and caught five passes for 58 yards and his only touchdown of 2021.
Two weeks later vs. Cincinnati in the AFC divisional round, Jones caught six passes for 62 yards in the 19-16 setback. So why are these games significant? It seems to indicate that after an up-and-down year, the prolific wideout appeared to be pretty healthy.
Regardless, the Titans parted ways with Jones after the season. Now he gets a fresh start in Tampa, the home of a team that he used to have his way with during his time with the Falcons.
In a combined 16 games vs. the Bucs, he totaled 114 receptions for 1,841 yards and 11 scores. It should be very interesting when the Buccaneers host the Falcons in Week 5.