Reports surfaced on Monday that the Atlanta Falcons have "received calls" and were "listening to offers" for veteran wide receiver Julio Jones.
The Falcons are in a tough spot with their salary cap heading into the 2021 NFL Draft on Thursday. Jones carries a $23 million cap hit this year and a nearly $20 million hit the following two seasons. So it makes sense that Atlanta would at least listen to offers.
Falcons general manager Terry Fontenot joined the Midday Show on Wednesday and explained that they're willing to listen to offers and calls regarding any player, beyond just Jones.
"When we talk to general managers, they really look at any expensive contract because those guys know our cap situation," Fontenot told Andy and Randy. "They've asked about any player on our roster, a good player with a big contract--teams have asked about those players."
With nine picks, the Falcons currently don't have enough cap space to sign their rookie class. According to OverTheCap, the Falcons have less than $1 million in cap space heading into this season.
"The response is the same, on any player, that 'hey, we have listen.' So if you offer us a certain compensation, just let us know and then we'll look at it and determine if it's right. That's been our response on any player and, so, we've had those discussions really early on about a lot of guys on the roster."
In building a team, is there ever a situation where a player is untouchable in those conversations with other general managers?
"I don't think anyone in the organization--I'm not untouchable," Fontenot continued. "The head coach isn't untouchable. There's nobody in the organization, outside of the owner, that's untouchable, right? ... Not one individual; it's always what's best for the team."
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