In his third career playoff game, the electrifying wide receiver produced one of the most spectacular conference championship performances ever.
Transcendent athletes are revered. You admire their extraordinary skill set and cherish all the memorable moments they provide. When they possess a tremendous work ethic and prove to be a consummate professional, you gain even more appreciation for them.
When they do electrifying things 99% of other athletes can’t do, you will watch that highlight and get the same satisfaction enjoying it, whether it’s one month or five years from now. That encapsulates what Julio Jones did in his career.
I am producing a ten-part series for one of the all-time greatest Falcons players. It will feature ten of his greatest games from my viewpoint. These games won’t be ranked or done in chronological order. This isn’t meant to spark debate on which performance was better.
This is to celebrate one of the most remarkable players in NFL history, beloved by nearly everyone who played with and against him. Posting five consecutive seasons of 1,400+ receiving yards is a testament to how consistently exceptional Jones was. It’s time to look back on his legendary performances and remember some good times, starting in January 2013.
Setting the Tone on One of the Biggest Stages
The Falcons were finally in an NFC Championship game after four consecutive winning seasons with no playoff victories. They were the best team in the NFC in 2012, beating the Seahawks in the divisional round in a rollercoaster battle. Jones had a modest performance, which happened occasionally in his second season.
Defenses had to pick their poison between trying to contain Roddy White at his peak, Tony Gonzalez being the ageless wonder he was, and an ascending Jones. White and Gonzalez had their moments scoring touchdowns (one Richard Sherman would never forget) in the dramatic playoff win over Seattle. It was Jones’ time to make his mark against San Francisco.
San Francisco had arguably the most imposing defense in the league that season. Jones proceeded to have 120 receiving yards on Atlanta’s first three drives against them. The offense started with a bang, as Jones scored a 48-yard touchdown accelerating through a rare San Francisco coverage bust as Matt Ryan found him. Dashon Goldson was out of sorts positionally as Jones blazed by him.
It wasn’t the first big play Goldson was on the receiving end of. On a third and ten, Jones caught a tightly contested pass from Ryan off a dig route away from Goldson for a 27-yard gain. That third-down conversion made everyone realize they were watching a second-year wide receiver take over in one of the biggest games a team can play in.
On the next possession, Jones caught a 20-yard touchdown Ryan zipped in over Tarell Brown in the back of the end zone. Jones always had tremendous footwork when making contested catches in narrow areas. His concentration, staying composed to get both feet down after battling for position to catch the go ball, was phenomenal for his second touchdown.
It left the Georgia Dome in complete euphoria as the Falcons took a 17-0 lead. Jones had four 100+ yard games during the 2012 season. While he produced some incredible performances that season, this game was a monumental moment for him to build off going forward in what was a legendary career. He dominated arguably the best defense in the league in a conference championship. It doesn’t get much more impressive than that.
Devastating Loss Doesn’t Overshadow Overall Performance
Unfortunately for the Falcons, their hot start couldn’t be sustained. A 28-24 defeat was difficult to digest for a team built to win the Super Bowl. Jones ended up producing 11 catches for 182 yards and two touchdowns.
Unfortunately for him, it wasn’t the first time in his illustrious career that a sensational playoff performance wasn’t capped off with a win. This series will have very few mentions of Super Bowl 51. It’s supposed to be a celebratory series after all.
Despite how crushing the NFC Championship defeat was for him, Jones made it clear he was ready to be the main driving force in the Falcons’ offense. Gonzalez only played one more season. Age eventually caught up to White, as well as clashes with Kyle Shanahan.
Jones showed his capabilities on a massive stage, getting double-digit targets and making plays all over the field. His ability to make contested catches was crucial in the team’s success against a ferocious defense that knew how to wear wide receivers down.
This was the first of countless epic games from the future Hall of Famer. What made Jones even more special was that this wasn’t even his greatest playoff performance ever. That happened four years later in the Falcons’ most iconic win in franchise history.
A review of that game will surely be happening, with plenty of other incredible performances from Jones between 2014 and 2019, as most of his best games happened during his historic run, where he became the first and only wide receiver ever to produce 1,400+ receiving yards in five consecutive seasons.