Khadrie Rollins
krollins@ajc.com
Julio Jones is putting up video-game numbers. His 830 reception yards are the most in the NFL, and his 118.6 yards per game is the best mark of his career. But if opposing defenders are allowed to grab his arms while the ball is in the air, he may not be able to keep it up.
Two weeks in a row it looked as if he was interfered with on crucial plays late in the game, but no penalty was called on either.
“I’m not out here playing around,” Jones said. “This is my job, I take this very seriously. … I wouldn’t say I was frustrated, it was just like, I’m doing my job, I want you to do your job, in a sense. But it’s over and done with. I don’t harp on it like, ‘Oh man, I can’t get through the day today because I didn’t get a pass-interference call.’ It’s over and done with, so it’s on to the next.”
While Jones shrugs off these controversial no-calls and leaves them in the past, opposing defenses cannot do the same with his production. Last year Jones led the league with 1,871 receiving yards — the second most in a single season — and this year he is practically on pace to join Calvin Johnson as the only players to earn 1,900 yards in a season. But these historic numbers are no surprise to his coach.
Coach Dan Quinn said he can see what Jones is capable of because of his work ethic on the practice field, where he and quarterback Matt Ryan work out the details that allow for so many of their big plays.
Big plays will be harder to come by going forward though as the Falcons (4-3) only have three more games against teams ranked in the bottom half of the league in passing yards allowed. But that doesn’t mean Jones won’t have plenty of chances to pile on yardage.
As seen by his seven grabs for 139 yards and a touchdown in Seattle, Jones can put up impressive stats against even the stiffest competition. And with games against New Orleans, and its 30th-ranked pass defense, and the Panthers, who allowed Jones to explode for a monster performance of 12 receptions for 300 yards and a touchdown, hope is still alive that Jones can do what no receiver has ever done — 2,000 yards in a season.
On Sunday the Falcons host the Green Bay Packers (4-2) and their depleted secondary. Jones praised their safeties and said they were two of the best in the league, but with starting cornerbacks Quinten Rollins and Damarious Randall both nursing groin injuries that kept them out of practice Wednesday, Jones should have a pretty favorable matchup.
“He’s for sure in our thoughts quite a bit, but we’ll have to see how they play him,” Quinn said. “Sometimes looks go one way and other opportunities come about. As a competitor, he has one of the rarest abilities to stay focused really long, really into it for a long time. … If his looks are there, he’s going to make you pay.”
Before the year started, many said Pittsburgh Steelers receiver Antonio Brown, whose 1,834 receiving yards trailed only Jones last season and rank fourth all-time, would have a good chance to be the first player to reach 2,000 yards. Even though Jones is once again the league’s top man in the category, he is not thinking about achieving that feat.
“No. Not at all,” Jones said. “If it’s required for us to win, get to the playoffs. … For us to be successful as a unit, I’m doing whatever it takes to get there.”
