Chiefs DT Chris Jones Not At Minicamp

According to Adam Schefter, Chiefs DT Chris Jones was not present for mandatory minicamp today. 

Jones is up for a new deal this offseason that should pay him significantly more than the $20 million a year he made on his previous deal. He’s entering the final year of that contract. 

The defensive tackle market is led by Rams DT Aaron Donald at $31.67 million a year and Jones’ goal is to get as close to that as possible. 

Nate Taylor, citing a team source, says the Chiefs are waiting to see if the Jets and DT Quinnen Williams get a deal done that makes Williams the second-highest-paid defensive tackle, and will then negotiate off of that. 

Jones, 28, is a former second-round pick of the Chiefs back in 2016 out of Mississippi State. He played out the final year of his four-year, $6.231 million contract and made a base salary of $1.19 million in the final year of the agreement.

The Chiefs franchised Jones before eventually signing him a four-year, $85M extension that included $60 million guaranteed. 

Jones is entering the final year of that deal and is set to make a base salary of $19.5 million in 2023. 

In 2022, Jones appeared in all 17 games for the Chiefs and recorded 44 total tackles, 17 tackles for loss, 15.5 sacks, two forced fumbles, a recovery and four passes defended.

We’ll have more on the Chiefs and Jones as the news is available.