Expect More Julio in Coming Weeks
NASHVILLE – For Julio Jones, it was a start. And a finish, which was the most important thing.
Jones played 32 snaps on offense in Sunday’s 20-0 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars, which was second among Titans wide receivers. Nick Westbrook-Ikhine played 52.
For Jones, however, it was just the second time in his seven appearances this season that he played fewer than 50 percent of the snaps on offense (he played 45 percent). The other was Kansas City on Oct. 24 when he was on the field for 43 percent of the plays.
The difference is that the hamstring injury that has plagued the seven-time Pro Bowler for much of the season sidelined him in the late going against the Chiefs and caused him to miss the following contest. Against the Jaguars, Jones was available from beginning to end and came out of it looking for more.
“The good thing is we got through the game with no hiccups,” wide receivers coach Rob Moore said Tuesday. “He felt great after the game, and we’ll just continue to build on that. The plan is for him to get more and more work each week until we can get to a point where we can get through a whole game.”
The most high-profile of Tennessee’s offseason acquisitions, Jones played in just six of the first nine games and never more than three in a row before the decision was made to place him on injured reserve.
He missed the required three weeks before he was returned to the active roster on Saturday. The hope is that the extended break and emphasis on recovery would finally resolve an issue that has plagued Jones throughout training camp.
Franchise officials made a similar move the following week with outside linebacker Bud Dupree and one the week after that with wide receiver A.J. Brown, two players have dealt with their own injury issues this season and are expected to be back on the roster in the coming weeks.
“Anytime you’re in this situation, we kind of have a big-picture mentality,” Moore said. “We know that – going forward – it’s in our best interests to make sure we don’t push the envelope too much because at the end of the day it’s about getting (Jones) through the remainder of the season and – hopefully – into the postseason.”
Jones caught four passes on six targets for 33 yards against Jacksonville. His 8.25 yards-per-reception average was his lowest of the season and a 5.5 yards-per-target was his second-worst.
For the season, he is third on the team with 25 receptions for 369 yards. His average of 14.8 yards per catch leads the Titans, among players with at least 10 receptions. He still has not caught a touchdown for Tennessee.
The numbers are not what coaches and franchise officials expected when they acquired him in a trade with Atlanta. But he has had an effect beyond those figures – when he has been on the field, of course.
“You certainly see the impact he has on a game just based on how defenses play us when he’s in the game,” Moore said. “It may not show up in the stat sheet, but it’s definitely a distinct difference when he and A.J. are in the game. From that standpoint, he brings a respect element to it.
“So, his impact isn’t always when he has the ball in his hands, it’s also how a defense plays us.”
And it is something the Titans hope to see with increasing frequency in the coming weeks.
