Chiefs vs. Falcons: Julio Jones injured, ruled out for Week 16

Julio Jones has been ruled out of the Falcons upcoming game against the Chiefs.

The Kansas City Chiefs were already favored by quite a bit over the visiting Atlanta Falcons on Sunday for a number of reasons—from being the superior team to playing at home. Now you can add the loss of the Falcons’ best overall player to injury as wide receiver Julio Jones has been ruled out of Sunday’s game at Arrowhead.

The Falcons released their injury report on Christmas Day and stated that Jones would not be able to play at all due to a hamstring injury that has kept him out all week from the team’s practices.

Jones needs no introduction, even to the casual NFL fan, given his household name status as one of the NFL’s best pass catchers for most of the last decade. The former first-round pick has six consecutive 1,000-yard seasons coming into this year and seven overall in his 10-year career (including this season). He’s a seven-time Pro Bowler and the best offensive weapon for the Falcons.

Unfortunately for Atlanta, they’ve been forced to work without Jones on several occasions this year, as Jones has only played in 9 of 14 games so far and he will miss yet another Sunday. He has 51 catches for 771 yards in those 9 games, so don’t be fooled that he’s fallen off—at least in his ability. In his availability, maybe. However, it means Calvin Ridley will shoulder an even greater load against K.C. on Sunday

The Falcons have played through a frustrating season in 2020 that began with five consecutive losses to open the season. Head coach Dan Quinn was let go at that point to attempt to salvage some chance of turning things around. Interim Raheem Morris earned a win in his first game stepping in for Quinn, and he’s gone 4-5 in the last nine game, but the Falcons have been buried in a competitive NFC South that also includes the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New Orleans Saints and even the Carolina Panthers.