The Miami Dolphins are scheduled to square off against the Atlanta Falcons in 2021 and, as things currently stand, Julio Jones. But the Jones trade saga in Atlanta feels like it is only getting started now — the league’s June 1st deadline to portion off some of their dead cap hits between both the 2021 and 2022 seasons has opened the door for a much more realistic set of trade negotiations for the Falcons.
Specifically for the Miami Dolphins, there’s interest to be had in the Julio Jones situation; but not for the standard reasons. Miami isn’t a likely destination for Jones given his big-time salary and the additions the Dolphins have already made to their pass catching room this year. But with Jones currently on the schedule and some of the potential landing spots also sharing time on Miami’s schedule for the 2021 season, the team will certainly benefit from Jones landing in certain spots more than others.
The worst case scenario would almost certainly be the Patriots, given that would bump Miami from facing Jones once on the schedule to a guarantee of two games against Jones should he get traded to New England.
Other contenders for Jones that are on the Dolphins schedule include the Tennessee Titans and the Baltimore Ravens — although the Titans appear to be a much more likely final destination at this point than Baltimore.
But would anything be better for Miami than to not face Jones at all this season? Jones may be aging but he’s still one of the NFL’s most imposing threats at the wide receiver position. Teams like Green Bay and Seattle should be of the utmost interest to Miami as landing spots for Jones via trade; as that would push him off of Miami’s regular season schedule and any potential showdown this season would come in a championship game setting.
And the Dolphins would certainly welcome that opportunity if it knocked.