Forget about the Titans and Falcons. It’s the Bucs who are the real winners of Sunday’s Julio Jones trade.
That’s because the terror that has reigned over Tampa Bay for the last 10 seasons is no more. He’s gone; no longer in the NFC South.
His presence is no more.
To put it bluntly: Jones was a pain in the Bucs’ ass. Much like Steve Smith, Jones routinely dominated when he went against the pewter and red.
Per Pro Football Reference, the former first-round pick played in 16 games against the Bucs and recorded 114 receptions on 171 targets. The 114 receptions were good for 1,841 yards and 11 touchdowns. That’s 14% of his career yards and 18% of his career touchdowns against one opponent. The yardage averages out to 115 yards per game, which is well above his 95.5 career yards per game.
Which is the best mark in NFL history.
Sure, the Bucs and Julio Jones faced off twice a year, so I looked up his averages against the Saints and Panthers. It wasn’t even close. Jones averaged just 89.7 yards per game and scored three touchdowns in 18 games against the Saints. He averaged 95.4 yards per game and scored six touchdowns in 16 games against the Panthers.
Three of Jones’ 13 multi-receiving touchdown games were against the Bucs and he recorded 100+ receiving yards in 9 of the 16 matchups. One of his three 250+-yard games came against the Bucs.
Who knew 2019 would be the last time the Bucs would ever have to deal with the human paraquat (joking, of course) that is Julio Jones?
But at the same time: Who cares? Jones is gone. He’s even in a different conference. The Bucs will never have to see him again unless they reach the big stage again.
At that point, I think they would be most happy to see him.
But until then, good riddance.
What do you think of the Julio Jones trade? Let us know in the comment section below!
