Kansas City Chiefs star defensive tackle Chris Jones' reworked one-year contract solution includes roughly $5 million in incentives.
NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported on Tuesday that Jones will sign a one-year contract worth up to $25 million, per sources informed of the situation.
The $19.5 million base salary he was already set to make (minus $1.08 million game check for Week 1 and fines incurred for skipping training camp) remains the same, but he has the chance to make more with another successful campaign.
The details of Jones' incentives are as follows, according to Rapoport:
- $1 million for 35% playing time.
- $1 million for 50% playing time
- $1.25 million for 10 sacks.
- Another $500K for 15 sacks.
- $1 million for first-team All Pro and Super Bowl LVIII appearance
- $2 million for Defensive Player of the Year and Super Bowl LVIII win.
A notable aspect of the pact is that Kansas City retained the ability to franchise tag Jones in 2024, ensuring leverage over the star defensive tackle and potentially keeping him off the open market. The tag number would be about $32.4 million in 2024, NFL Network's James Palmer reported (a 120% increase on his 2023 cap number).
Jones held out all offseason, seeking a new contract that pushed his pay closer to Aaron Donald's $31.66 million-per-year average rather than the $24-21 million deals a slew of young DTs signed this offseason. Ultimately, the sides settled on an incentive-laden deal to bridge the gap.
Jones' absence in the Chiefs Week 1 loss to the Lions was notable. The D played well overall but got pushed around by Detroit's O-line late in the defeat. Getting the all-world DT back ahead of Sunday's trip to Jacksonville is a big boon as the Chiefs look to avoid going more than one game under .500 for the first time in the Patrick Mahomes era.
