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The Atlanta Falcons and Julio Jones will part ways before the 2021-2022 NFL season. Julio Jones is the third NFL star this off-season to have requested a trade. He now joins Aaron Rodgers and Deshaun Watson as the other two stars who want to join new franchises in 2021.
Five teams have a great chance of landing Julio Jones this off-season, but five teams need to stay away from getting into a bidding war for the wide-receiver. These five teams cannot afford to get into a trade war for the Falcons' star wideout.
Who are the five teams that cannot afford to enter the bidding war for Julio Jones?
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Here are the five teams in the race for Julio Jones who should not bid against the other involved teams.
#1 San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers are the first team on the list that cannot afford to get into a bidding war for Julio Jones. Atlanta wants a first-round pick for their star wide receiver. The 49ers don't have a first-round selection until the 2024 NFL draft.
They have already sent their next three first-rounders to the Miami Dolphins to trade up to pick Trey Lance. The Niners are building for the future, and trading for Julio Jones doesn't necessarily help with their plans. If anything, it will hurt their goals because they'll need to give up their valuable second-round picks as well.
San Francisco has already made a massive move this off-season and bankrupted themselves on first-round draft picks. They cannot afford to get into a bidding war for Julio Jones because all they have to offer are second-round picks. The Niners cannot afford to give up on signing young talent for a wide receiver who only has two to three years left in his NFL career.
#2 Kansas City Chiefs
The Kansas City Chiefs cannot afford to trade for Julio Jones. Their salary cap will need to drop, which means some of their top talents will need to take pay cuts. Tyreek Hill has already made it known that he's unwilling to restructure his deal because he feels he's earned the money he's making right now.
Kansas City cannot afford to break up its core group of players. If they want Julio Jones, the Chiefs will need to offer draft picks and a player that makes enough money to free up the space and funds required to land the wide receiver. The Kansas City Chiefs have made it to back-to-back Super Bowls with the team they now have. Why shake things up?
The Chiefs need to consider the following before trading for Jones - he is one of the best wide receivers when he's 100% healthy, but maybe those days are behind him. Do the Kansas City Chiefs' odds of winning the Super Bowl get better with Jones?
There are too many unpredictables surrounding the trade for Jones. Hence, the Chiefs cannot afford to shake up their roster for one player.
#3 Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys cannot afford to trade for Julio Jones this off-season. Jerry Jones has signed his three big stars to new long-term deals. The Cowboys will pay $150 million combined to Prescott, Cooper, and Elliott over the next two years.
If the Cowboys want to land Julio Jones, they will need someone to take a pay cut and give up the draft capital that they require to fix the rest of the squad. The Dallas Cowboys cannot afford to give up draft picks because they have too many holes on their roster right now. Dallas also has a talented group of wide receivers in Amari Cooper, Michael Gallup and CeeDee Lamb.
There is also another big reason why the Cowboys cannot afford to give up draft picks for Julio Jones - Dak Prescott. The Cowboys' franchise quarterback may look good during his off-season workouts, but there is still a big question mark on how he will perform with a 300-pound defensive lineman running after him. There are too many questions surrounding the Cowboys financials for them to sign Julio Jones.
#4 Philadelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles are in a rebuilding stage as a franchise. They have parted ways with their head coach and franchise quarterback. The Eagles are not 100% committed to their young quarterback Jalen Hurts and need all the draft picks and young talent to rebuild their roster.
The Eagles cannot afford to get into a bidding war because the Atlanta Falcons own all the leverage in this situation. If a team offers a first-round pick and two second-rounders, the Eagles must provide a better deal to land Jones. This will take Philadelphia away from their rebuilding stage.
Philadelphia has too many areas on their roster that need fixing before they can afford to give up draft picks. They also just drafted DeVante Smith, who is looking good ahead of the new season. When it comes to trading for Julio Jones, the Philadelphia Eagles need to avoid temptation and stick with the plan they have right now.
#5 Seattle Seahawks
The Seattle Seahawks may seem like a crazy pick for this list because they're currently the favorites to land Julio Jones. There are a couple of reasons why the Seahawks cannot afford to get into a bidding war. Let's take a look at those reasons.
Reason one: The Seattle Seahawks already gave up two first-round picks to land Jamaal Adams last season. They will have to give up their third first-round pick for Julio Jones and sit in the same position as the 49ers. Russell Wilson is a great quarterback, but he needs help upfront before the Seahawks think about Julio Jones.
Reason two: The Seattle Seahawks have two great wide receivers, and DK Metcalf has proved himself to be the number one option for Wilson. The Seahawks just signed Tyler Lockett to a massive extension. If Julio Jones was a top-left tackle in the NFL, then it would make sense for the Seahawks to get him. Right now, it's just too risky for the Seahawks to trade Julio Jones when they need Russell Wilson protected under center.
