Trade talks involving Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones picked up heavy steam this week when he was called by FOX Sports TV host Shannon Sharpe, live on Undisputed, where Jones said on the phone that he was, “out,” of Atlanta. Many have speculated whether or not Jones was aware he was live on TV, or if he did not know his conversation would be broadcasted nationally. But former Indianapolis Colts punter and radio show host Pat McAfee said on The Pat McAfee Show on Friday that he has been told Jones did not know he was being called live.
“Per my media source,” McAfee said on his show. “They did not know. FOX, Julio, nobody knew that was happening and that is why we have seen the actions out of FOX we have seen with the content since it happened. It has not been re-posted, it ended abruptly, there was no follow-up questions, there was no nothing on FOX. Everybody else has talked about it, they have not.”
If Jones indeed did not know he was on live TV, there could be legal issues that FOX and Sharpe face. As pointed out by ESPN’s Kyle Bonagura, California’s “two-party consent” law says it is a crime to record or eavesdrop on any confidential communication, including a private conversation or telephone call, without consent from all parties involved. No statements have been given from any of the parties involved in the call, nor has it been reported it there will be legal charges coming from the call.
It looks likely that the Falcons will deal Jones, it’s just a matter of who will get the five-time All-Pro and what they will pay. On NFL Live on Thursday, former NFL wide receiver and ESPN Radio host Keyshawn Johnson suggested the Las Vegas Raiders could be a landing spot for Jones.
“When you look at some of the things he can do, a West Coast Style system comes to mind for me,” Johnson said. “Not only the Baltimore Ravens, where everybody’s talking about, but here’s one no one’s talking about: the Las Vegas Raiders. When you think about big receivers, they don’t have any. Henry Ruggs is an itty bitty. They’ve got John Brown, an itty bitty. Their biggest wide receiver is Darren Waller, who is a tight end. Jon Gruden loves veteran guys. I think that is a team, when you look at Derek Carr, who could use a big-time red zone target like Julio Jones, it makes all the perfect sense in the world. And they wouldn’t mind paying the money.”