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The Tennessee Titans received Julio Jones and a 6th round pick from the Falcons in exchange for a 2nd and 4th round pick. This trade has the possibility of propelling the Tennessee Titans into AFC Championship/Super Bowl conversations. Julio Jones has made the Pro Bowl in 7 out of his 10 years in the league, and two of the years he didn’t make the cut was due to injury. Although he was injured for nearly half the year this past season, Jones almost attained 800 receiving yards. Additionally, he has had more than 1,100 receiving yards in all seven of his Pro Bowl seasons. Not only does Jones show up in the regular season, but he also performs well during the playoffs. Out of his 81 targets in the playoffs, he has hauled in 61 of them for 834 yards and six touchdowns. These statistics over the course of his career have solidified him as one of the most elite receivers in the NFL, and a major acquisition for the Tennessee Titans for the upcoming season.
The Titans lost their 2017 first round receiver Corey Davis to free agency, so the Julio Jones trade came at a great time. With the addition of Jones, the Titans now have a potent passing game to complement its top tier rushing attack. Ryan Tannehill will have his starting left tackle, Taylor Lewan back this season to give him better protection, and he can throw to both Julio Jones and A.J. Brown. Not to mention the Titans still have Derrick Henry, who is one of the best running backs in the league heading into his 6th season. Henry has attained at least 1,000 rushing yards his last three seasons, one of which he miraculously acquired 2,027 rushing yards to defeat Chris Johnson’s single season rushing record with the Titans. With the dual threat of the rushing and passing game, I fully expect the Titans to win the AFC South and have a decent shot at a Super Bowl appearance. The only major question mark remaining with this team is its defense, which was elite a few years ago but has fallen off by losing some major pieces over the last couple of years. With the acquisition of Bud Dupree and Janoris Jenkins, the Titans have tried to sure up some struggling areas in their pass rush and pass defense, but we will have to see if those pieces are enough to fix their recently porous defense.