Julio Jones is one of the best wide receivers of this generation, and he has gained over 1,400 yards in receiving for each of the past five seasons. He stuns the crowd with incredible catches and his stellar play begs us to ask the question: Is Julio Jones the most elite wide receiver since Jerry Rice? The greatest receivers since Jerry Rice which we will compare to Julio Jones are Randy Moss, Terrell Owens, and Calvin Johnson.
Jones has 10,731 career receiving yards and is 30 years old. Wide receivers generally have their last productive year at the age of 32 before gradually fading away and retiring, so with a few years left, Jones could finish with 14,000 to 15,000 yards before his career is over which would rank in the top 10 all-time receiving yards.
Jones seems to be making his mark on the NFL, and his statistic of collecting 1,400 yards in five straight seasons which is an incredible stat considering that Jerry Rice never did it. From age 23 to age 29, Julio Jones gained more yards than Randy Moss, Terrell Owens, and Calvin Johnson with 9,772 yards.
What separates Jones from the rest of the pack is his ability to get to and perform in the playoffs, even deliver amazing clutch plays. Jones has already passed Owens for playoff receiving yards while playing in seven fewer seasons than the loud-mouthed T.O., and the Falcon’s future Hall-of-Famer is 143 yards away from passing the legendary Randy Moss in that statistic. Jones has as much success as Terrell Owens and Randy Moss in the playoffs as they have all made it to one Super Bowl and lost. Calvin Johnson never made it past the first round.
When it comes to athletic playmaking abilities that produce highlights, Jones falls nowhere short of Owens, Moss, or Calvin Johnson. He has made incredible catches just like his predecessors, and his athletic ability is a mix between Owens and Calvin Johnson. Jones runs the 40-yard dash faster than both Owens and Calvin Johnson while finishing just a hair behind Moss who had one of the most explosive speeds for a wide receiver in NFL history.
As far as accomplishments, Jones has six Pro-Bowl selections which are tied with Owens, Moss, and Calvin Johnson but remember, Jones has three more productive years in the NFL where he will most likely surpass all three receiving legends in Pro-Bowl selections.
The Falcon’s Pro-Bowl receiver has 1,871 yards on 136 catches in 2015. Moss, Owens, and Calvin Johnson never got more than 122 receptions in a season – proving Jones’ ability to produce on the field. In fact, Jones’ 136 receptions in 2015 were more than Rice ever had in one season (122). 1,871 yards by Jones is also more than Owens and Moss ever had in one season.
According to the numbers, Julio Jones was definitely one of the best wide receivers since Jerry Rice amongst the likes of Randy Moss, Terrell Owens, and Calvin Johnson. Though it’s hard to determine which is the best, Jones sets the stage to surpass some of the greatest receivers of all time in the next two or three seasons. If he continues producing the way he is, he will wind up as one of the greatest receivers of all-time and the top two or three after Jerry Rice.
