Kevin Stefanski Reacts to Falcons WR Drake London’s Viral Julio Jones-Like Catch

Drake London made waves across the NFL after making a Julio Jones over Malcom Butler-esque catch on the opening joint practice between the Atlanta Falcons and the Indianapolis Colts on Wednesday, Aug. 19.

Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa connected with the 6-foot-4 Falcons star wide receiver, who went airborne to snag the football as Colts cornerback Justin Walley defended it to no avail. London then punted the ball into the air to celebrate the highlight-reel play.

The jump-ball reception garnered nearly 55,000 likes and over 29,000 shares on the Falcons’ official Instagram page.

It even left head coach Kevin Stefanski impressed.

“Pretty good catch,” Stefanski told reporters in Indianapolis on Thursday, Aug. 20. “That’s his ability to just play the football in the air, body control, obviously strong hands. So that was a great catch.”

London has the rare distinction of being able to secure leaping catches over opposing defensive backs.

It comes from the hardwood.

Out of Moorpark High School in California, London was a three-star basketball prospect, averaging 29.2 points and 11.9 rebounds as a shooting guard. Paired with his football talent, it landed him a two-sport opportunity to play for the USC Trojans football team and as a technical walk-on for the basketball team.

“I think Drake’s skillset, he can do many things, and one of the things he can do is elevate to get the football or be able to play it,” Stefanski said. “With his background in basketball, just his body control is elite. So understanding how Drake wins, where he wants the football, there’s a lot of conversation that happens between the players in this case, which I think is also valuable.”

London played both sports for USC as a freshman, but left basketball behind midway through his first season in 2019-2020, to focus solely on football.

It ultimately paid off; Atlanta selected him with the 2022 NFL Draft’s eighth overall pick.

Now, London is regarded as one of the top players and receivers in the league. His peers voted him as the 66th-best NFL player ahead of the 2026 season.

In June, the Falcons also signed the fifth-year player to a four-year, $141 million contract.

London’s Falcons (0-1) will be in action on Saturday, Aug. 22, at Indianapolis (0-0-1) for Week 2 of the NFL preseason. Kickoff inside Lucas Oil Stadium is at 1 p.m. and will air locally in Atlanta on FOX 5.

London likely won’t appear in the game, as Stefanski plans to rest his team’s starters.

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