The Tennessee Titans seemingly went all-in on last season to try and compete for a Super Bowl championship, bringing in star wide receiver Julio Jones to pair with A.J Brown and Derrick Henry to give quarterback Ryan Tannehill all the options he could ask for.
The moves seemed to work in the regular season, with the Titans looking like true contenders. They finished atop the AFC with a 12-5 record heading into the playoffs. But they saw their season come to an end with a disappointing performance against the Cincinnati Bengals in the wild-card round of the playoffs.
The team was riddled with injuries to many of their star players, along with some inconsistent quarterback play from Tannehill which ultimately did them in. But Jones had by far the worst season of his career, playing in only ten games last season and only posting 434 receiving yards and one touchdown.
The past two seasons have seen a noticeable drop-off from Jones, who had easily been one of the most consistent receivers of the past decade to that point.
Reports emerged Wednesday that the team is planning on releasing the seven-time Pro-Bowl receiver this offseason.
The Titans are planning on releasing WR Julio Jones, sources tell @AdamSchefter and me
— Dianna Russini (@DMRussini) March 16, 2022
This news has the NFL world speculating on where Jones could end up next, and whether or not he could be a good fit for their team in 2022.
Imagine DK Metcalf + Tyler Lockett + Julio Jones!
Come on, #Seahawks… Make it happen. https://t.co/9dfeVqV6R5
— Samuel Gold (@SamuelRGold) March 16, 2022
Give him the Keelan Cole deal from last year https://t.co/6DVis1xkr4
— Joe Caporoso (@JCaporoso) March 16, 2022
Hate to see this because I loved that Tennessee went for it, but he's ready for a reduced role now. Put him in a power slot position @chiefs @packers https://t.co/PgYTeDys45
— Ian Valentino (@NFLDraftStudy) March 16, 2022
Bring him home Terry. https://t.co/6OrjWsWU9U
— 𝑺𝒄𝒐𝒕𝒕 𝑪𝒂𝒓𝒂𝒔𝒊𝒌 🐦⬛🏈🇬🇪🇺🇦🇱🇻 (@CarasikS) March 16, 2022
This move will save the Titans around $9.5 million against the cap, which is likely the reason that they made this decision.
Designating Julio Jones a post-June 1 cut will save the Titans about $9.5 million in cap space. $2 million of his 2022 salary was fully guaranteed, so they're on the hook for that. https://t.co/9rUEu1etuU
— Dan Graziano (@DanGrazianoESPN) March 16, 2022
At this point in his career, it would appear likely that Jones would want to be on a competing team next season, which makes teams like the Green Bay Packers and Kansas City Chiefs some very interesting potential destinations.
Regardless, if 2021 is any indication whoever ends up with Jones will seemingly not get the player that he once was. But he can certainly still be productive in the right system given the opportunity.
