After months and months of negotiations, the Kansas City Chiefs have officially reached an agreement on a contract to bring back defensive tackle Chris Jones for another season. While the deal does not give him the long-term security he was hoping for, it does at least end Jones's holdout after missing Week 1.
Terms of the new deal were not made available, but this allows general manager Brett Veach to make anything happen following the season—from a tag-and-trade scenario to renewed negotiations for a long-term deal to Jones hitting free agency outright.
"Chris is an elite player in this league, and over the last seven years, he's really developed into a leader on our team," said Veach in a team press release. "He's been instrumental to our success and Super Bowl championship runs and it was a priority for us to keep him in a Chiefs uniform. I'd like to thank Chris and his representation, Michael and Jason Katz, for their desire and patience to get this done. Through this process two things were obvious, Chris wanted to be a Chief, and the Katz brothers worked diligently on his behalf."
The ability to reach a new deal came into serious question for both sides in the last couple of months with Jones's willingness to hold out of the entirety of training camp and the preseason for the Chiefs. Instead of good will being shared in sound bytes on both sides to the press, a rift seemed to grow between the parties, which drew the ire of fans and poured gas on future trade rumors. Now, however, all parties involved can settle in and get back to work on a title defense in '23.
Jones, who is entering his eighth season in the National Football League, was coming into the final year of a four-year contract signed back in 2020 worth up to $80 million.
The Chiefs traded out of the first round back in the 2015 NFL Draft in order to secure more picks, but with their first overall selection in that draft near the top of the second round, the team grabbed Jones at No. 37. Former general manager John Dorsey would strike further gold in the same draft with the selection of Tyreek Hill in the fifth round.
Chris Jones can now settle in and chase a Hall of Fame finish to an already outstanding career.
Ever since he arrived in K.C., Jones has been an impressive playmaker in the middle. For a team that lost Dontari Poe around the time of his arrival, Jones has been a well-rounded force in the middle who became a much greater disruptor than anyone could have predicted. Now Jones has forced himself into the conversation for Defensive Player of the Year, has gone to four straight Pro Bowls, and is starting to put together a Hall of Fame resume if he keeps up the consistency.
Through seven seasons, Jones has 65 total sacks for the Chiefs, including 15.5 last season. He's helped the team to two Super Bowl victories in the last four seasons and he remains the team's best pass rushing threat by far.
The Chiefs' Super Bowl window remains wide open because of tough decisions that replace pricey veterans with cheaper options, but Jones is the cornerstone of a defense that has to perform in lengthy postseason runs. Here's hoping he can help the Chiefs win their first game of the year in Jacksonville and get back to another title run with this core group of players.