Julio Jones Was the Only Atlanta Falcons Draft Pick Over Four-Year Span to Start 8 Games in the NFL Last Season
By Jason Lisk
701 different players started at least 8 NFL games last year. Only one of them–star wide receiver Julio Jones–was drafted by the Atlanta Falcons between the years 2009 and 2012. This came up while doing background research for this post on ESPN’s Mark Dominik. I had to do a double take to make sure I hadn’t screwed something up when Julio Jones was the only player who came up for Atlanta.
It’s tempting to say that the Julio Jonestrade is the reason for this. In the 2011 draft, GM Thomas Dimitroff gave up the late 1st to move up to #6 overall to take Jones, and also had to trade away a 2nd, 4th, and the next year’s 1st and 4th round picks. Yes, that was a haul, and I was critical of it.
"How good does Julio Jones have to be make this a favorable trade, if Cleveland is just average with their use of those picks given historical averages? Probably close to a Hall of Famer, maybe it’s even if he’s as good as Keyshawn Johnson and Herman Moore. So, not only does he have to be a good solid #6 pick, but in the top 20% of all picks in that range."
I have to laugh at myself for suggesting that the Browns could draft at just an average level. Live and learn, hubris of youth and all. Cleveland turned those picks into (roughly, after other trades) Phil Taylor, Greg Little, Owen Marecic, Brandon Weeden, and James-Michael Johnson. Yuck.
So, Atlanta got more from Julio Jones than Cleveland remotely came close to getting from all those picks. It’s not like the evidence is great that Dimitroff would have done a bang-up job with those picks, either, because the issue is not Julio Jones, but the other draft picks.
The 2008 draft set up Atlanta for much of the success and playoff appearances early in Mike Smith’s tenure. Not just Matt Ryan, but Curtis Lofton, Thomas DeCoud, and Harry Douglas, along with contributors like Sam Baker and Kroy Biermann. But the drafts since then have largely failed to build or bolster that opportunity, and those are the drafts that should now be in their prime, entering years 4 to 7 in the league, with most of those players between 26 and 30.
Mike Smith caught plenty of the heat over the last two years, and yes, he made some bizarre time management decisions. But he was doing that before, when they were winning. He was the same guy, and the talent around him was declining, especially on defense.
William Moore is the only other pro bowler drafted during that time by Atlanta. He missed 9 games last year and will be 30 this season. Sean Weatherspoon is the other impact player that was drafted, and he has played 7 total games over the last two years. Peter Konz, the player drafted to play center, also missed most of last year with injury. Besides that, the list of draftees does not inspire.
So I’m not sure any other GM has as vital a pick as Dimitroff at #8. It comes in a crossroads at the draft. Plenty of potential options on defense at that point, and the possibility of a home run or a strike out. The last two drafts have produced some starters but the jury is still out. Atlanta needs an immediate impact player. Julio Jones can’t do it alone.