Chris Jones remains absent at start of Chiefs offseason training activities

The Kansas City Chiefs weren’t expecting to see Chris Jones at OTAs and Terez Paylor is reporting he is indeed absent from the team at the start of workouts.

No one familiar with the situation thought Chris Jones was going to show up on Tuesday and it turns out they were right. The star defensive lineman for the Kansas City Chiefs is waiting and hoping for a shiny new lucrative contract extension that will make him one of the NFL’s highest paid linemen, alongside his new teammate Frank Clark, but until then, the Chiefs shouldn’t expect to see him at the team’s facilities.

OTAs are underway for the rest of the Chiefs, and it’d be nice to have Jones present as the defense begins to come together under new coordinator Steve Spagnuolo. There are new coaches in place including Brendan Daly for the defensive linemen, but Jones is talented enough to catch up when it matters most.

For now, a deal has not been reached despite the fact that both sides were reportedly already working on the terms of an extension back in March. Jones has stated that he wants to remain with the Chiefs for the rest of his career, so it’s not as if either party is lukewarm on the idea. After all, Jones might just be the best overall defender on the team at this point.

Jones broke out in a major way last season with 15.5 sacks, good for third in the NFL, and proved himself to be disruptive as an interior linemen on par with the likes of Aaron Donald. Together with Frank Clark, the Chiefs should have one of the best defensive fronts in the game, but that means getting Jones to the table.

Jones already missed voluntary workouts earlier this offseason—emphasis on voluntary—and he’s not expected to be at any of the Chiefs upcoming weekends filled with offseason training activities until a deal is in place. Here’s hoping the Chiefs have an announcement soon.