Buccaneers: Julio Jones departure propels Tampa even higher in NFC S
Buccaneers: Julio Jones departure propels Tampa even higher in NFC S
The Buccaneers are saying good riddance to Julio Jones.
In a movie similar to Luke Kuechly’s retirement a while back, Julio Jones leaving the Falcons is another welcomed move by the rest of the NFL South. Ian Rapoport Tweeted the news earlier today, but it looks like the deal is close to done. The Buccaneers were already the favorites in the division before this trade, but this just makes life that much easier.
Jones was a force of nature during his career against the Bucs. Tampa’s weak secondary for the past decade aligned poorly with the emergence of a Hall of Fame talent like Jones, and Bucs fans had a front-row seat to a wide receiver clinic each time the Falcons came to town.
Now, the Falcons have lost one of their best offensive players of all time, they received little compensation in return, and a full-on rebuild has begun in Atlanta.
This decision comes after the surprising selection of Kyle Pitts in the first round of the draft rather than a quarterback. Pitts himself wasn’t the surprise, but the decision to take him and move on from Jones makes little sense if it was done in the name of competing now.
Without Jones, the Falcons don’t have the offensive weapons to keep up with most of their opponents in the division, even with Pitts, and they missed out on a future quarterback option like Justin Fields for a tight end to add to a star-studded offense.
Pitts could be an excellent addition for the Falcons in the long term, but Jones is a top-notch receiving option that will be missed desperately. Had the Falcons received a quality haul of picks back, this trade may have worked out better, but only receiving a second falls short for a player like Jones.
The Falcons needed the cap relief and didn’t really have a chance to keep Jones, but this move still makes the outlook much better for the Buccaneers in these games going forward.
It will be a few years before Atlanta back is being a competitor at this rate, but it was already going to be a difficult prospect to keep up with Tampa on the current track that both teams are on.
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Buccaneers: Leonard Fournette in a difficult spot in 2021
Leonard Fournette is coming off of an excellent stretch with the Buccaneers, but it will still be hard to carve out a spot on this roster in 2021.
Playoff Lenny has become a very popular name in Tampa over the past five months, and rightfully so. The running performance from Leonard Fournette for the Buccaneers in the playoffs was exactly what the team needed, and his impact on that run will never be forgotten.
With that in mind, the running back room in Tampa could still look different than the one that ended the season. By that point in the year, Fournette was the starter, and Ronald Jones was the change of pace, and few others actually got touches out of the backfield.
Now, Jones should regain his spot as the early-down back. Even with Fournette’s remarkable run at the end of the season, Jones was still better between the tackles for the year. Fournette will be an excellent thunder to Jones’ lightning, but it’s unlikely that he will keep the same share of touches as he saw in the playoffs.
To make matters worse for Fournette fantasy owners, Giovani Bernard is the clear candidate to be the third-down back. Fournette was mediocre in this role last year, and the Bucs were wise to find an option with better hands.
With Jones fighting for 1,000 yards on the ground and Bernard as the prototypical Tom Brady running back, Fournette could be the odd man out if Jones minimizes his mistakes early.
This is not a bad issue for the Buccaneers, having two clear starters at running back, but Fournette needs to be willing to work and serve any role as called upon. It’s always hard to figure out the Buccaneers running back room, and going into it with any expectations other than winning could be dangerous.
Fortunately, the Buccaneers have shown a willingness to ride the hot hand, so Fournette will have a weekly opportunity to prove himself and take control of the starting job. He’s already done this once, and there’s no reason to believe he can’t do it again.
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