Now that the Julio Jones bandwagon has exploded, I thought it might be interesting to look back at how his stock has played out here at TST.
So of course, I had to begin with me. Not because I said it, but it was the first comment on Julio Jones here at TST. From Dec. 3, 2008:
Julio Jones. If you haven’t seen him play yet, watch him. He is an absolute beast. Jones will be the top WR in whatever draft he goes in, probably two years from now. He’s 6’4" and already 210 lbs. as a freshman. I’m hoping the Rams are targeting him for the 2011 draft to help us get over the Holt era and usher in the Jones era.
Nearly nine months later, I dropped some memorable prose in an open thread that consisted of 36 comments...from me. Man am I glad we have a real community here these days:
A.J. Green is good
If he and Julio Jones come out for the same draft, teams are going to have a tough time choosing between them.
By Nov. 4, 2009, the Julio love was expanding. In a great post to read for the humbling power of hindsight (see the poll where Sam Bradford gets less votes as a potential Ram than Jake Locker, Jimmy Clausen and Colt McCoy...), Carneros said:
We don't need a WR too early this year
as long as we get Julio Jones next year. I think he’ll be better than any WR’s this year. IF there were ever a reason to root for another Rams losing season next year, Julio Jones would be that reason.
Julio Jones is the WR I have been keeping an eye on. Well, him and AJ Green. Both guys are 6’3ish and if we don’t have a chance at Bryant with our second pick where ever that maybe in the draft, I say we wait on WR.
There certainly were doubters, despite my keeping Jones at #2 on my big board deep into the 2010 season. andyhawk questioned if Julio had the skill set to make a big enough difference at the NFL level:
Did you guys watch Julio Jones play last Saturday?
He was pretty much a non-factor in that game. He is big, but he didn’t look very fast or shifty. The NFL isn’t like college where big receivers can just run over defensive backs once they catch the ball. I must be crazy, but I don’t even have Jones in my first round list.
Just being big isn’t gonna get it done at the next level.
This isn't to point fingers and say this person was right, and this person was wrong. If Julio doesn't put it together at the next level, then those people who the current conventional wisdom whose comments seem misplaced will end up being vindicated. The point is to show that consensuses change. Conventional wisdom shifts. Draft stock slides up and down, and often times isn't even close to appraising appropriate value on prospects.
So as we near the draft, take people opinions with a grain of salt, mine included. Just try to picture yourself four years from now. You could be writing a piece like this, which Van dropped four years ago.
Side A? Citing Yamon Figurs as a potential sleeper. The other side? Pointing to Sidney Rice as an option. Oh, how time flies...