Seven-time Pro Bowl wide receiver Julio Jones is signing a one-year deal with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, per source. The soon-to-be 45-year Tom Brady now will have a chance to throw to the 33-year-old Jones.
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— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) July 26, 2022
Someone’s a glutton for punishment. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports that Julio Jones has returned to the NFC South on a one-year contract with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, bringing the overrated former Atlanta Falcons wide receiver back into conflict with a team that’s beaten him more than any other opponent: the New Orleans Saints, who achieved an 11-7 record against Jones’ Falcons teams (next-best, ironically, is the Bucs themselves at a distant second place with a 6-10 record against Jones).
Jones hasn’t scored a touchdown of any kind against the Saints since they drafted all-star cornerback Marshon Lattimore in 2017, and he’s only managed to score three times in his career against New Orleans — while coughing up four fumbles. He’ll have an opportunity to balance that ratio in two meetings with the Saints this season, but between his own struggles against New Orleans and the annual frustration they’ve dealt Tom Brady he has his work cut out for him.
The Saints didn’t get a chance to play against Jones after he got out of Atlanta in a trade with the Tennessee Titans, who put him on injured reserve on the eve of their 2021 game with New Orleans. Jones didn’t make much of an impact even when healthy in Tennessee, so it’s fair to wonder what he has left in the tank. But the Buccaneers didn’t sign him for nothing.
