The Tampa Bay Buccaneers started training camp this week and quarterback Tom Brady was quick to start building chemistry with one of his new weapons, Julio Jones.
Jones recently signed a one-year deal worth up to $6 million to join the Buccaneers. The 33-year-old receiver is expected to compete for the No. 3 spot on the team’s depth chart.
Fans in attendance to Jones’ debut were treated to what looked like a receiver in his prime. Crisp routes and one-handed catches had the fans on their feet cheering like a regular season game.
It wasn’t only the fans that were impressed by Jones’ first reps at training camp, Mike Evans was paying attention as well. It’s a classic case of real recognizing real.
Real Recognizes Real
During the Friday press conference, Evans was asked about Jones, his response was quite revealing. Evans started with the story of the Buccaneers hiring Dirk Koetter and how Evans immediately started watching film on Jones as a Falcon and to get an idea of Koetter’s scheme.
“Probably the most film I’ve watched of a certain player since I’ve been in the league has been him,” Evans stated. “He’s an unbelievable player. He still has a lot of juice left. And he’s a great guy, man. It’s just cool talking to him, add another great weapon.”
Evans continued by talking about how injuries hurt this team at the receiver position last season and how with Jones on the roster that’s less likely to be an issue.
“Having him, it makes us more well-rounded, gives us more depth at the position,” Evans went on. “And he’s an all-time great talent, so he’s going to add a lot of things. Hopefully, that can take some double teams off of me. That would be great.”
Following his trade acquisition by Tennessee before the 2021 season, Jones spent just one season with the Titans. Jones dealt with several injuries, including a hamstring issue that put him on injured reserve for a few weeks. He played in just 10 games last season and had the poorest statistical season of his professional career.
If Jones can stay healthy and as Evans said, keep some of the double-teams off of him then Evans is poised to have another fantastic season.
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