Falcons head coach Arthur Smith 'won't comment' on Julio Jones' public trade demand

Julio Jones shocked everyone when he told Shannon Sharpe during a phone call that aired on "Undisputed" that he was done playing in Atlanta. Falcons head coach Arthur Smith said that he would not comment on Jones' public trade demand, saying that he would be keeping any conversations between the two sides "private."

"They should speak for themselves, and so I'm not going to comment -- it doesn't change anything for us," Smith said, via Zach Klein of WSB. "We understand what our plan is moving forward. We have multiple private conversations with our players and those are conversations that are going to remain private on my end."

The Falcons and Jones appear to be heading towards a divorce after nearly a decade together, but while the separation appears imminent, it probably won't happen this month. Any team that trades for Jones in May would be forced to absorb his $23.3 million cap hit but after June 1, it can be spread across multiple years.

Jones has said he wants to be traded to a team where he can win, with the Titans and Patriots being among the teams rumored to be interested. As for the Falcons, ditching Jones' contract would keep their cap situation from becoming an outright disaster.