With recent comments about wide receiver Roddy White's changing position in Atlanta's offense, as well as pregame speculations about other team's interest in acquiring him, many fans are wondering about his future with the Falcons.
However, team officials recently denied that White was on the trading block. The player himself has also mentioned that he wants to spend the remainder of his career in Atlanta. "I'm a Falcon. I'll be a Falcon for life. I've dedicated everything I've got to this team and this organization. I'm going to continue to do that. I'm going to continue each and every week to get better, be a better football player and try to win," White told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Following a 952 combined receiving yards during his first two seasons, the 33-year-old rattled off six straight seasons with over 1,000 yards prior to his production decline of 711 yards in 13 games back in 2013. A "high-ranking official" for the Atlanta Falcons also told the Journal-Constitution that a report by Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network is not accurate.
The said report claims that three NFL teams are interested in trading White since the Falcons' have made him their third option behind Julio Jones and Leonard Hankerson."No! [We've] had no calls and most importantly he is a Falcon and an important part of this offense," the official said.
During the team's recent match against the Redskins over the weekend, the Washington football team did a good job of keeping the Falcons' offense in check. However, Julio Jones' still found a way to shine through. The team's other wide receiver delivered five of his 10 targets for 67 yards. He also managed to scoop up a fumble in the end zone, even with a lingering injury and ended up with a touchdown in Sunday's win over the Redskins.
Jones was catch-less during the first half but started to get more involved in the offense. He eventually caught his longest catch of the day for 20 yards to kick off the second half. But things are still not looking very good for the Falcons wideout. Jones did not practice on Monday and is reported to miss the team's match-up against the New Orleans Saints on Thursday.
"Falcons uncertain whether Julio Jones, who did not practice today, will play Thursday night due to a hamstring injury, per a league source," ESPN's Adam Schefter shared via Twitter. Jones had previously been listed as "Questionable" due to a hamstring and toe injury during the week leading up to the Falcons' Sunday match versus the Redskins.
