Falcons All-Pro wide receiver Julio Jones had another stellar season in 2018, yet for some reason, people always find something to nitpick about the NFL’s best receiver of this era.
Despite posting 113 catches for a league-high 1,677 yards and eight touchdowns, contract concerns and general ignorance have sometimes led to Jones receiving an unfair amount of criticism. When Glover Wright said Jones needs to leave Atlanta on Twitter, former teammate and current Bears wide receiver Taylor Gabriel was quick to defend Julio.
Gabriel’s coming off of another good season in which he was targeted 93 times, catching 67 balls for 688 yards and two touchdowns for the Bears, despite having to work with a serious step down at the quarterback position from Matt Ryan.
Prior to 2018, Gabriel spent two seasons in Atlanta and caught six touchdown passes during the Falcons’ Super Bowl run in 2016.
The Falcons opted to use their first-round pick last year to draft Calvin Ridley out of Alabama, partly to replace Gabriel. Solid as Gabriel was, Ridley has proven to be an upgrade. He led the team with 10 touchdowns last season.
