Kansas City Chiefs star Chris Jones is set to be a free agent, with players able to begin negotiating with other teams on March 11 and, officially, on March 13.
It appears things might not even get that far with Jones, the five-time Pro Bowler and two-time All-Pro, who was critical to their securing their third Super Bowl this past season. Jones shared a cryptic message on X, formerly Twitter. However, unlike the ominous tone such posts typically take, Jones’ message was encouraging for Chiefs fans.
Chris Jones Appears to Hint at Contract Talks With Chiefs in Cryptic Post
Chiefs’ Cap Concerns Cloud Picture
Jones also appears to be at least one hour into a phone call, though it is unclear with whom.
Jones, 29, is coming off a 10.5-sack season, his second in a row with double-digit sacks, and would be arguably the top defensive free agent on the market. Spotrac projects him to command a deal worth roughly $85 million over the next three seasons.
The Chiefs enter the offseason with $9.7 million in cap space, per Spotrac, so it will be interesting to see the structure of any potential deal for Jones. It will also be interesting to see what other moves may come as a result. The Chiefs will have to create some more breathing room somehow.
“Praying all my dawgs get what they deserve,” Jones posted on March 1.
7 Teams Expressing Interest in L’Jarius Sneed
One move could be allowing standout cornerback L’Jarius Sneed to walk away in free agency this offseason. The former fourth-round pick allowed a career-best 51% of the throws in his direction to be completed in 2023.
The Chiefs franchise tagged him. But because they applied the non-exclusive rights version, Sneed is free to negotiate with other teams.
There is also heavy rumored interest around the league.
“A person with direct knowledge of the situation told USA TODAY Sports that the Minnesota Vikings, Indianapolis Colts, Tennessee Titans, New England Patriots, Detroit Lions, Atlanta Falcons and Jacksonville Jaguars have expressed interest in the Chiefs corner,” USA Today Sports’ Tyler Dragon wrote on March 5.
Chris Jones Tips Cap to Jason Kelce
While there were some whispers about Travis Kelce possibly retiring at the end of the season, his brother, Philadelphia Eagles center Jason Kelce, followed through on his plans to do just that.
The latter Kelce made his emotional announcement on March 5. Jones shared a clip of Kelce, complete with a simple gesture: a handshake emoji.
Jones is not shy about voicing his opinion, and that extends to social media where he has shown support for Defensive Coordinator Steve Spagnuolo, who received a contract extension this offseason, and the idea of adding wide receiver O’Dell Beckham Jr. in free agency.
The Chiefs’ first order of business may be to ensure that they retain their defensive engine, though.
Similar to Patrick Mahomes’ impact on the offense, the Chiefs’ defense will be a threat as long as Jones is in the fold. Everything else is just ancillary after that.
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