The Kansas City Chiefs’ lengthy contract dispute with star defensive tackle Chris Jones reached a temporary reprieve Monday when the two sides agreed to a new one-year deal, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.
The resolution comes at an inconvenient time for the Jacksonville Jaguars with the Chiefs set to visit EverBank Stadium on Sunday for a Week 2 matchup.
Jones, 29, is among the most dominant defensive players in the NFL. His 92.3 grade from PFF last season was second in the league, just two tenths behind the Cleveland Browns’ Myles Garrett for the top spot.
With the four-year, $80 million deal he signed in 2020 set to expire in the 2024 offseason, Jones held out of training camp, preseason, and Week 1 of the regular season in pursuit of a new contract. While the new deal isn’t a long-term solution for the Chiefs and Jones, it’s enough to get the defensive lineman back on the field in 2023.
Whether or not that means Jones will play Sunday against the Jaguars remains to be seen. Throughout his holdout, Jones has said that he’s been preparing to play whenever a resolution is reached. Just last week, he told reporters he could play against the Detroit Lions one day before the Week 1 game happened.
“If a deal gets done, I can be out there tomorrow,” Jones said, via ESPN.
In his absence, the Chiefs started the duo of Tershawn Warton and Derrick Nnadi at defensive tackle. Detroit recorded 368 yards of total offense in a 21-20 win, allowing just one sack and two tackles for loss.
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