It might be time for NFL teams to revisit the 2021-2022 calendar, as the Tennessee Titans have secured themselves as an even stronger force with this week’s acquisition of legendary receiver Julio Jones, a force General Manager Jon Robinson is actively prepared to implement come fall.
Titans would relinquish a second-round pick in 2022, and swap 2023 picks with the Falcons to attain Jones. Tennessee would additionally work a bit of cap magic, restructuring quarterback Ryan Tannehill’s contract in order to pick up Jones’ salary tab of $15.3 million.
Titans upper room has a clear road map to install one of the strongest offensive cores in the league and is willing to sacrifice to do so.
While a guest on NFL Network’s Good Morning Football Wednesday, Titans General Manager Jon Robinson said that Jones’ addition was well worth it in his club’s grand scheme.
“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,” he said. “We thought it was a move that we needed to make for us. I know our fans are super stoked to have him here.”
As solutions to a more proficient defense remain unclear, Robinson set his sights towards the safest bet: offense. After losing Corey Davis and Jonnu Smith to free agency, Jones’ addition couldn’t have been timelier.
With a loaded offensive front in Julio Jones, A.J. Brown, and Derrick Henry, it’s likely that Tennessee will all but hold defenses hostage in the upcoming season.
While A.J. Brown has the ability to get his hands sticky deep in one direction, Julio Jones will be left to cause turmoil in the other and vice versa. Not to mention, the 2020 NFL Offensive Player of the Year, Derrick Henry, will be rampant on the ground.
The opposition will certainly have to pick their battles wisely.
Robinson expects the newly bonded trio to be at full throttle, applying a new set of pressure to wear down defenses play after play.
“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,” the Titans GM said.
Robinson believes Jones’ trade is a game-changer, a chess piece the organization executed perfectly.
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