The Atlanta Falcons officially ruled Julio Jones out for Thursday night’s game against the New Orleans Saints with a shoulder injury.
Jones appeared to injury his right shoulder in the first half of last week’s 35-22 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers but finished the game and played 48 of 85 offensive snaps.
Jones went through a brief warmup in pregame Thursday, catching passes from assistant head coach Raheem Morris. Jones then took a lap with coach Dan Quinn to discuss his status and walked off the field shaking his head.
He watched as the other receivers went through the typically warmup without him.
Jones’ absence means the Falcons will count on Calvin Ridley and Russell Gage as primary targets for Matt Ryan.
The Falcons also are without tight end Austin Hooper (MCL), but running back Devonta Freeman returns from a foot injury
Jones, who has not missed a game this year despite dealing with a few nagging injuries, leads the Falcons with 64 receptions for 950 yards and four touchdowns.
Another 50 receiving yards will put him out 1,000 for the season and give him six consecutive seasons with 1,000-plus yards. But Jones hasn’t scored a touchdown since Week 3 at Indianapolis.