Julio Jones, 28

WIDE RECEIVER, ATLANTA FALCONS

Julio Jones is best known for one-handed catches and toe-tap touchdowns, but away from the gridiron the NFL star has been making headlines for something else entirely. He’s a principal investor in a $200 million real estate development outside Atlanta that will bring a mix of shops, offices, apartments and condos to an area adjacent to the massive Mall of Georgia. It started small, he says, with the intent to create a local destination for Atlanta’s suburban population, a group that includes Jones and many of his teammates. “All the guys, we always had to drive like 45 minutes to an hour, all the way downtown, to do something,” Jones says.

That inspiration has grown into a massive enterprise that has been described as a new center of gravity for the I-85 corridor. The project, named Ariston, will include more than 160,000 square feet of retail space, over 500 apartments and a 21-story hotel and condominium. Jones says it’s just the start of his off-field career in real estate. “This is the first of many,” he says. “I have a lot of things in the works.”

He’s already proven himself to be prolific on the field. Since the Atlanta Falcons traded away five draft picks to select Jones sixth overall in the 2011 draft, he’s become perhaps the best wide receiver in the game. His team rewarded him in 2015 with a five-year, $71 million contract extension that landed him at No. 43 on last year’s list of the world’s highest-paid athletes.

—Chris Smith and Dan Kleinman