The Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs have picked up the contract option on star defensive tackle Chris Jones and will keep the right to place a franchise tag on him in the offseason, according to an NFL Network report Friday.
The Chiefs paid him $4.25 million he had earned in incentives under a one-year contract he signed last September after his holdout from training camp through Week 1 of the 2023 season, according to the report.
The 2024 projected franchise tag for a defensive tackle is $19,753,000 based on the top five salaries at the position, according to Over The Cap. Jones would become a free agent in March if Kansas City doesn’t use the tag or reach an agreement with him.
Jones, 29, was first-team All-Pro in 2022 and 2023 and a five-time Pro Bowl selection. He tied for the team lead this season with 10.5 sacks, and led the Chiefs with 13 tackles for loss and 29 quarterback hits in 16 games (all starts).
One of the standouts for the Chiefs in their overtime victory over San Francisco last Sunday in Super Bowl LVIII, Jones had six quarterback pressures, including on a third-and-4 to force the 49ers to kick a field goal.
Jones has played his entire eight-year career in Kansas City, which selected him in the second round of the 2016 NFL Draft out of Mississippi State. He has 75.5 career sacks and 273 tackles, including 30 this past season.
Also on Friday, the Chiefs announced they have extended the contract of special teams coordinator Dave Toub after 11 seasons in Kansas City.
A member of head coach Andy Reid’s initial staff with the Chiefs, Toub, 61, added the title of assistant head coach in 2018.
–Field Level Media