Friday, July 27, 2018
Julio Jones\’ revised contract with the Atlanta Falcons will net him an additional $2.9 million in 2018 and an assurance that the team will
conduct good-faith negotiations on another extension in 2019, according to league sources.
Jones received a $4.4 million signing bonus that was previously part of his scheduled base salary in 2019. The All-Pro receiver agreed to lower his base salary from $10.5 million to $9 million for the net of an additional $2.9 million this season, sources said.
Jones will make $13.4 million in 2018 instead of $10.5 million. None of the money is incentivized.
The Falcons consider this a salary-cap-neutral deal because the $4.4 million signing bonus can be spread in equal parts over three years for accounting purposes. That means it won\’t affect their plans to work on contract negotiations for left tackle Jake Matthews and defensive tackle Grady Jarrett, sources said.
Jones had planned to hold out from training camp without an adjustment to his contract. The assurance from the team that it would hold good-faith negotiations on another contract in 2019 was also a catalyst to the compromise, sources said.
The wide receiver officially reported to training camp Thursday ahead of the Falcons\’ first practice Friday morning. Quinn said he had expected Jones at camp for a while.
On Friday, Jones said he had stayed in touch with Quinn and deferred contract talk to being between his agency and the team.
\”I don\’t control that kind of stuff,\” Jones said. \”For me, I\’m just going to play football. Like I said, just took care of me. At the end of the day, it\’s a brotherhood. I\’ve got to hold up my end. I\’ve got to be prepared to come out here and be 100 percent, and going out there and they can count on me each in every play.\”
Jones also reiterated that he never planned to hold out from training camp.
\”Nah,\” he said. \”Like I said, it was just me handling my business, doing what I need to do to be the best I can be for this ballclub.\”
Falcons owner Arthur Blank aid Friday he wasn\’t worried about Jones being at camp.
\”Quite honestly, I never really had any concern that he would not be here,\” he said. \”Back in May at the owners meetings, I was asked about how I felt about [Jones], and I said he\’s going to be a Falcon for life. Couple days later, he echoed that comment on his own, prompting that he plans on being a Falcon for life.\’\’
ESPN\’s Vaughn McClure contributed to this report.
