Pfw: Falcons Had Right Idea In Trading For Jones

[Swift&Change]

The trade can be looked upon as 2 ways ...Long term success and short term but the short term dividends Im going to put as a LOSS ..I cant sit here and say to myself 1 game where if we didnt have Julio Jones we would have lost ..Not 1 and that says a lot about things but it also says to me that the move wasnt worth the short term returns ..Also did not help us be EXPLOSIVE in playoffs. Julio has good chance to turn out to be a all time player the skill level is there but short term of trade has failed..

Now I see the point of the article..That Mike Wallace would come more expensive then hat we are paying Julio but article also fails to point out the holes left from voided draft picks need to be filled with free agents ..Its basically a even slate

Mike Wallace -8 mil per

Hole1 - draft pick

Hole2-Draft pick

vs

Julio Jones

Hole1- free agent mid tier 4-6 mil

Hole2- free agent mid tier 4-6 mil

More draft picks you hold and make impact less holes you need to fill in free agency

[Knight of God]

10 years from now, it will probably look like a bargain.

Already does to me. That draft was mediocre and this wasn't much better. Talent wise this FA is pretty high, but so are the dollar amounts. Good Job TD!!!

[isproab]

I've always liked the trade. Julio and A.J. were the best two WRs on paper since Calvin Johnson. Both are better than any WR coming out in 2012 or 2013. I don't worry about the draft picks because there are no guarantees. They could turn out to be Sam Baker, Peria Jerry and Chevis Jackson. I just felt Julio was as close to a sure thing as you get.

[Knight of God]

I've always liked the trade. Julio and A.J. were the best two WRs on paper since Calvin Johnson. Both are better than any WR coming out in 2012 or 2013. I don't worry about the draft picks because there are no guarantees. They could turn out to be Sam Baker, Peria Jerry and Chevis Jackson. I just felt Julio was as close to a sure thing as you get.

[Guest Dirty Bird Nation ®]

You get what you pay for.

Millions of fans in the California Bay area that bleed black and silver will disagree dating back to the drug-ridden times of Todd Marinovich to the people of Jamarcus Russell.

[Magic Man]

Yes JJ was cheaper than a FA. But you totally ignore the other costs e.g. the loss of all those draft picks that we deparately need(ed). The TRADE set us back 1-2 years. It was a desperate gamble that did not work, I love the Falcons but we are (were) more than one player away from going "all the way". What are we going to do about left tackle next year? Running back is a problem, still don't have a speed back that can get to the outside (Quiz was a wasted pick). If we assume that we sign all of our crtical FA, we still need some help in the secondary. You get my point I hope.

I laugh at knee jerk "realists" like this.

[Voice of Reason]

Something else that never gets mentioned, albeit is a small factor but a factor none-the-less, is what that trade does for our FO in leverage.

If you all will recall, Roddy missed some time sitting out due to a contract dispute. He wanted top money for a WR and eventually got it. Why? Well first, he earned it and deserved it. But the sitting out of training camp revealed to TD that Roddy held us hostage in the negotiations. Some even suggested that in a few years he might try it again.

Not anymore! With the Jones trade, if Roddy starts to act a fool or wants to try to leverage the team for more money, they have other options.

Again, not a huge factor in the trade decision - but a factor all the same.

[neko]

The only thing that might be a problem now because of the trade, is our big number of FAs. If we can't resign them, we might in in a pickle because we don't have the draft picks to replace them. But that is really my only critique of the trade. Good job by TD.

The fact that our coordinators didn't turn out doesn't help either, but it's hard to place the blame for that on TD.

i dont see the lack of draft picks being an issue as it relates to our many FAs. sure, i would love to have more - i LOVE draft picks. but we are looking at replacing a fair amount of starters, depending on who re-signs and who goes. TD has been planning for this. we have a lot of cap room to manuever smoothly through it, and we potentially need a lot of guys who can step right in and play. keep in mind there has been near future super bowl focus happening down at FB for some time now. we have to rely on returning guys and other vets more so than a big handful of rookies. not to mention that i think a lot of current guys on our roster will surprise many people next season when they are placed in a scheme that better fits their strengths.

back on point, trading for JJ was brilliant. yes, now we have holes and are a team in transition, but he is a once a decade kind of player who also is a perfect fit for this team. you have to go get that and TD did. (the same argument could possibly be made for Mario as well.)

[tnfalcon8]

There were only two other players in the first that I really liked and would take over Julio: Von Miller and Aldon Smith. I loved the trade for Julio then, and I love it still.

[WeNeedaQB]

Yes JJ was cheaper than a FA. But you totally ignore the other costs e.g. the loss of all those draft picks that we deparately need(ed). The TRADE set us back 1-2 years. It was a desperate gamble that did not work, I love the Falcons but we are (were) more than one player away from going "all the way". What are we going to do about left tackle next year? Running back is a problem, still don't have a speed back that can get to the outside (Quiz was a wasted pick). If we assume that we sign all of our crtical FA, we still need some help in the secondary. You get my point I hope.

The pick was sold as being the one piece we needed to get to the super bowl. We did not get to the super bowl. We did not even win a playoff game. We did not even compete in the playoff game. We did not score a single point on offense in the playoff game.

The author comes up with this false choice suggesting that we were either gonna trade for Julio or have to pay big money for Wallace as if it were mandated be league rules that we had to have one of those guys.

The trade was a huge failure (even though Julio is good). It did not accomplish what the goal was. Now that it didn't, the goal post has been moved. The height of said goal post has been lowered as well.

This message board has become so sad.

Just a bunch of blind sheep. I have never seen anything like it. Completely devoid of passion. But? That's the falcon filter. Our message board now closely resembles our team in the postseason. Impotent.

Edited February 22, 2012 by WeNeedaQB

[Mid-Nite-Toker]

With 2 bad loses in the p/o the JJ deal is a fail...end of story. MS's neck is on the line and TD's isn't far behind...keep blaming MM/BVG all you want.

TD did not draft/sign the players(quality) to get at least one p/o win and MS/staff could'nt coach them up. The phrase "sacrificial cows" is a warning sign.

Falcons screwed this up.

[Mid-Nite-Toker]

But i always said i liked the trade... It hurts this year because we dont have a 1st round pick this year but from where we are drafting (this year and last year) ... You will not find a talent like Julio where we pick...

This is a passing league... We grabbed an elite WR

But we have a sub-par O-line. TD drafted them, but most TATF members think they are mediocre. Firing the O-line coach was window dressing IMHO, its

a bad move w/o improved play on both sides of the ball and we did not really get that. Offensive scoring was down and the "D" gave up more points even

though I thought they were better. We can't ignore the fact the deal was meant to make short term strides, and it did not. We could've went 10-6 with

Jenks and the picks and that's the sad truth. With the needs on both lines and the potential lose of several good Def/FA...is a potential elite WR worth

that?

[muskokas finest ©]

10 years from now, it will probably look like a bargain.

Too many variables to ever judge this trade objectively eg. who Browns draft vs who Falcons would have drafted. IMO Julio will have to be a dominant NFL WR for this deal to not still be a media focal point years down the road.

[X-Man21]

It's funny how TD is criticized by some for "poor drafting" but then is called an idiot for trading picks for a sure fire prospect. If he was so bad, that 1st round pick wouldn't matter because he is going to pick another Baker or Jerry bust anyway.

Sorry, give me Julio anyday and twice on Sunday. This team is already good. There aren't that many holes.

It's all about the playcalling ... Without a doubt

[Big Rob 64]

Maybe even sooner than that. it hurts right now b/c we want our 2012 picks back, but next year, it will hardly even be discussed, unless Julio suddenly becomes terrible---

Much more likely scenario: Jones continues to produce, but because we did not have draft picks to shore up the offensive line and the defense, the TEAM slides to OK and possibly to terrible.

[falconsd56]

It seems the media in general forgot that under the new CBA rookies are a lot cheaper. Yeah it would have been dumb in 2010 to make that trade and you'd be paying Julio three times as much money.

But as it is now, top picks don't cost near as much and trading for them will.

Exactly Had we made this deal in 2009 we would have paid Julio more in Bonus and guaranteed money alone then we are paying him on his COMBINED contract now.

[Big Rob 64]

Julio is the best WR on this team. And we Paid Heavily for that.

We have: Julio Jones

We could have had: Gabe Carimi, Randall Cobb, one of a number of defensive backs or running backs that may or may not pan out in the future; we would still have our first rounder this year as well.

Cobb as a #2 but having Carimi as a true left tackle gives us a much better overall team. Having a #1 this year makes it even more obvious that we got hosed like an inmate on this deal, even WITH Jones playing up to potential. Jones can still only play one position, and his is a position that is non-critical to overall team success.

[Psychic Gibbon]

We have: Julio Jones

We could have had: Gabe Carimi, Randall Cobb, one of a number of defensive backs or running backs that may or may not pan out in the future; we would still have our first rounder this year as well.

Cobb as a #2 but having Carimi as a true left tackle gives us a much better overall team. Having a #1 this year makes it even more obvious that we got hosed like an inmate on this deal, even WITH Jones playing up to potential. Jones can still only play one position, and his is a position that is non-critical to overall team success.

Cobb as a #2 receiver? I would prefer having Jenkins as the #2 receiver over that scenario. Carimi is also not an LT, he is a pure RT.

[Guest Gritz]

I'm about as old as anyone on this board and I liked at the time and still like the trade

....and bringing up the rear of The Old Fart Brigade I have to say I have no problem with it either. You get what you pay for. We paid an elite price to get an elite talent.

[blkbigdog35]

Well I'm glad Julio is in black and red and he will make the trade worth it for years. People we have an elite WR and we gave up a 1st and a 4th whom maybe they wouldn't produce like Julio in his first year. Remember you can find guys late in the draft and undrafted rookie free agents.

[Ewok]

Would you guys still have taken Julio over AJ?

Rumor was that we offered Cincinnati but there wasn't enough time for them to accept.

[Psychic Gibbon]

Would you guys still have taken Julio over AJ?

Rumor was that we offered Cincinnati but there wasn't enough time for them to accept.

Yes. Green was the more polished prospect and would have given more immediate impact but Julio had far more upside but needed time to groom so he could realize his potential. In the end, both ended up in the situations they needed to end up in.

[Big Rob 64]

1) Cobb as a #2 receiver? I would prefer having Jenkins as the #2 receiver over that scenario.

2) Carimi is also not an LT, he is a pure RT.

1) lolwut?

2? Orly?

Carimi started all 13 games as a freshman at left tackle for the Badgers in 2007, replacing All-American Joe Thomas who was drafted by the Cleveland Browns at No. 3 in the first round of the 2007 NFL Draft.^[14] He was a second-team Freshman All-American selection by Rivals.com and The Sporting News, and a first-team Freshman All-Big-Ten selection by The Sporting News, as well as an Academic All-Big-Ten.^[4]

As a sophomore in 2008, he started all 10 games he played in. That year he was second-team Pre-season All-Big Ten by Lindy's and Athlon Sports, honorable mention Sophomore All-American by College Football News, and Academic All-Big Ten.^[4]

As a junior in 2009, he started all 13 games.^[15] He was a first-team Mid-season All-Big Ten selection by Phil Steele, a first-team All-Big Ten selection by media, a fourth-team All-American by Phil Steele, and Academic All-Big Ten.^[4] Commenting in Sports Illustrated in October 2009, Tony Pauline wrote: "Carimi is the next great offensive lineman to come from the Badger program. He's a terrific pass-protecting left tackle, with the size necessary to grow into a dominant run blocker."^[16]

During his senior year in 2010, when he was co-Captain of the Big Ten champion Badgers, Phil Steele made him a mid-season first-team All-American selection.^[17] He contributed to an offense that was ranked 5th in the nation in scoring (at 41.5 ppg), and 12th in rushing (at 245.7 yards per game).^[18][19][20]

As a senior, Carimi won the 2010 Outland Trophy, awarded to the nation's top collegiate interior lineman.

Bears Head Coach Lovie Smith said Carimi would come in as a left tackle. General Manager Jerry Angelo said he is versatile enough to play both left and right tackle,

Mike Mayock observed that Carimi is "a little bit like a Jon Runyan. He's kind of got a little nasty to him."^[39][40] Maycock also described him as "a thug, which I mean in a positive sense", and commented on his ability as a run blocker.^[41] He added: "I think he’s the kind of guy ... you try ... at left tackle, and if he can’t handle the speed out there, you’ve got an all-pro right tackle."^[42]

Neil Hayes of the Chicago Sun-Times wrote: "Many consider Carimi to be the best offensive-tackle prospect in the class ... Carimi played well against top competition and his feet are quick enough to play left tackle."^[47]

CBS Sports lauded "his prototypical size" and "excellent athleticism".^[4] As to his pass blocking, it noted that he has "the elite agility and nimble feet to protect the quarterback's blindside. Very difficult to turn the corner against because of his lateral movement and solid footwork. Also protects the inside lane well. Delivers a strong hand punch capable of knocking back an opponent .... Uses his length to block his man with one hand and knock an edge blitzer off his path with the other."^[4] With regard to his run blocking, it said he is "known as an athletic pass protector, but is a strong blocker".^[4] While he exclusively played left tackle in college, he was projected by some as a left tackle and by others as a right tackle.

Bucky Brooks of NFL.com reported that Carimi:

showed good footwork and lateral quickness in drills, and his body control is surprising given his frame. Although he might experience some problems against speed rushers,

teams will certainly start him out as a left tackle

and move him to the right if he falters.

[51]

Seems like a lot of people who know a bit about football seem to like him at LEFT TACKLE. He's certainly better than Sackmaker Baker and Svitek.

[Psychic Gibbon]

1) lolwut?

2? Orly?

Seems like a lot of people who know a bit about football seem to like him at LEFT TACKLE. He's certainly better than Sackmaker Baker and Svitek.

Cobb isn't a #2 receiver, and if he ever became one then you'd be looking for an upgrade that offseason. He's a slot receiver and return specialist. As for Carimi, it is not uncommon for LTs in college to move over to RT and stay there. I guess we'll just have to see next season if he recovers from his knee injury.

[Durrtay]

I like the trade, Julio is already a stud.