One of the biggest reasons why the Kansas City Chiefs won their second consecutive Super Bowl this season was the play of Chris Jones. Numerous times in the playoffs, opponents had a chance to score a potential touchdown only to have Jones disrupt the play.
Jones is a free agent, and it is a situation the two sides have found themselves in before. Last year, the Chiefs and Jones had a struggle to get a deal, and Jones actually sat out the opener last season during his holdout. Ian Rapoport made an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show on Friday and gave an update on where the conversations are.
No Contract Yet, but Positive Talks Between Sides
Neither the Chiefs nor Jones wants things to go like they did last year. Jones sat out the season-opening loss to the Detroit Lions last year.
After that game, he signed a one-year deal with a base salary of $19.5 million with incentive opportunities as well.
While there isn’t a deal done yet, Rapoport did give an update that should have Chiefs fans feeling pretty optimistic.
“A deal is not done; I do not get the sense that the deal is done,” Rapoport said during his appearance on The Pat McAfee Show. “It is a lot more positive now than it’s been in his previous negotiations. I get the sense the communication between Jones and the Katz brothers [his agents] and the Chiefs is positive and productive.”
Chris Jones Causes Stir on Social Media
There has been a lot of chatter on social media in the last couple of days about the talks, with much of that conversation being fueled by Jones himself.
On Thursday, Jones posted a picture of him and Chiefs coach Andy Reid celebrating the Super Bowl win against the San Francisco 49ers. For the caption on the photo, Jones simply wrote “KC … …”
KC…… pic.twitter.com/yODPsrCYf7
— Chris Jones (@StoneColdJones) March 7, 2024
The Chiefs drafted Jones with the 37th pick in the 2016 NFL Draft, and he has spent his entire career in Kansas City thus far. Through his first eight seasons, he has 273 tackles, 75.5 sacks, and 12 forced fumbles.
He has been very durable during his time in the Chiefs as he has played in every game in four of his eight seasons. He has missed only seven games in his career, proving to be extremely durable at the defensive tackle position.
KEEP READING: NFL Free Agency Tracker 2024
The talks are still going on in Kansas City between the Chiefs and Jones. However, the fact that Rapoport said the talks are going in a positive direction should be good news for Chiefs fans. At only 29 years old with a track record of staying healthy like Jones has, he is going to get a big contract this off-season.
For now, the Chiefs are the only team that can negotiate with Jones, but that changes on Wednesday, March 13 at 4 p.m. ET time when free agents are good to sign anywhere.
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