Julio Jones won’t play vs. Rams in Week 14

Julio Jones is dealing with a a turf toe injury, and he will not play on Sunday against the Rams, according to Jay Glazer of FOX Sports.

The injury status of Jones seemed to be a truly 50-50 situation with even the Falcons not seeming to know if the receiver would be ready to play. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, two different sources with the team offered two different answers about Jones’ status.

Ultimately though, Jones was ruled out after attempting to warm up Sunday and struggling to push off his injured foot.

Jones sat out practice this week as the team focused on his recovery. And despite the Falcons being “optimistic” about Jones’ status as late as Friday, Jones will not be playing Sunday. This will be the Falcons’ first game without Jones since 2014, as the star receiver played in every game last season and all but one the season before that.

Jones leads the NFL with 1,253 receiving yards, as he has been a pivotal weapon in Atlanta’s offense on a weekly basis. The wideout also leads the league in games with over 100 receiving yards, with seven, including a Week 4 game in which he contributed an even 300 receiving yards.

Jones has also caught 72 passes and five receiving touchdowns this year, maintaining his strong rapport with Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan. Ryan has targeted Jones on more than a quarter of all of his passes and has connected with Jones for gains of 20 yards or more on 24 occasions this season.

Losing Jones for Sunday’s matchup will not help a team that has dropped two of its last three and is at risk of losing its division lead. No. 2 receiver Mohamed Sanu is also out. Atlanta will have to rely on Taylor Gabriel in the passing game.