Julio Jones injury: When will Titans WR return?

Julio Jones has been one of the biggest free-agent bust signings of the offseason. Jones was one of the NFL's biggest stars at wide receiver and was consistently atop the league in receiving yards.

But ever since coming to the Tennessee Titans, Julio Jones has not been healthy. He has dealt with a nagging hamstring injury that started last season with the Atlanta Falcons.

The Titans face a significant challenge in the New Orleans Saints defense in Week 10. They're already without the franchise's biggest superstar, Derrick Henry. They'll also be without Julio Jones, who'll miss his fourth game.

How much longer will the Titans' biggest free-agent acquisition be out?

Julio Jones injury: When will Titans WR return?

On Saturday, the Titans placed Julio Jones on Injured Reserve. Jones, by default, will have to miss the next two weeks against the Houston Texans and New England Patriots.

After those games, the Titans have their bye week. That leaves four weeks for Jones to focus solely on his rehab and get back to full strength. Jones will look to be healthy for Week 14 against division rival the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Jones has dealt with this nagging hamstring injury for a very long time. In 2020, Jones missed a staggering ten games due to the same hamstring injury. In 2019, Jones was often injured again, missing seven games.

Health has become Jones' biggest obstacle as he's aged. From 2014 through 2019, the superstar wide receiver was at the peak of his powers and missed just four games. Jones is now 32 and is taking longer to recover from this setback.

Julio Jones is needed for the Titans to be Super Bowl contenders

If the Titans want to reach their goal of being Super Bowl contenders, Jones must get healthy and step up. In six games, Jones hasn't touched the endzone. He has 21 catches but hasn't been explosive, fast, or dynamic. His best game came in Week 2 when he had 128 yards.

Last week against the Los Angeles Rams, the Titans won with their defense. The offense looked very mediocre without Jones and Henry in the lineup. Ryan Tannehill still has A.J. Brown to throw to, but that's not enough.

The Titans rank 24th in the NFL in yards per play. Jones brought a career average of 15.2 yards per reception to the Titans when he signed.

For the Titans to reach their goals, Jones must get over his hamstring injury. If he's healthy, the Titans will need him to push the ball downfield.

But Jones and Tannehill haven't had time to develop chemistry. It's fair to wonder if they'll be able to this year or whether we won't see this connection at its best until next season.