Kansas City Chiefs defensive lineman Chris Jones lashed out over criticisms that he and his teammates have been receiving.
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The Kansas City Chiefs finally got what they’ve been missing from Chris Jones against the New York Jets in Week 9, as the defensive tackle racked up his first and second sacks of the campaign in the 23-point win.
But while Jones’s performance bodes well for the stretch run in 2026, it likely does little (or nothing) to change what appears an imminent parting of the ways between the seven-time Pro Bowler and the only NFL team for which he has ever played.
The reasoning behind that projection is that Jones is among the league’s most expensive players in 2026 per money allocated.
That deliberate financial maneuver indicates the Chiefs will cut bait with him this offseason in the interest of saving $18.6 million in 2027 while assuming a $19.5 million dead cap hit and another $35.1 million in savings in 2028 with a dead cap hit of $9.75 million, for a total savings of nearly $54 million against the cap over the next two years.
Danny Heifetz of “The Ringer Fantasy Football Show” made the argument late last week before Jones racked up two sacks against the Jets on Sunday.
The most expensive players in the entire NFL this season are No. 1 is Matt Stafford, No. 2 is Justin Herbert, No. 3 is Chris Jones. The Chiefs are allocating more money to Chris Jones this season than the Bills are allocating to Josh Allen.
He’s the third-most expensive player in the NFL, and he has no sacks, and the Chiefs are last in sacks. And so now you just have a pass-rushing defensive tackle who’s not getting defensive tackle pass rushes and also kind of doesn’t really play run defense or try.
Chris Jones Has Recent History of Coming on for Chiefs Later in Season
Chris Jones, Kansas City Chiefs
GettyKansas City Chiefs defensive tackle Chris Jones.
Jones obviously changed the narrative a little bit against New York with his production.
“Eventually, they’re going to start coming,” Jones said Sunday of his sack numbers, per Rob Collins of FOX4 Kansas City. “And when they come, they come in bunches.”
Chiefs DT @StoneColdJones on sacks from Thursday: “Eventually, they’re going to start coming, and when they come, they come in bunches.” #ChiefsKingdom
Kansas City has every reason to believe that is true, as the 32-year-old DT has tended to come on later in the season over the past several years, which Heifetz’s co-host Danny Kelly pointed out.
“The story on him has always been like, ‘I’ll pick it up once we get toward the end of the season. I’ll pick it up in the playoffs,'” Kelly said.
Chiefs Selected Defensive Tackle Peter Woods, Potential Chris Jones Replacement, in First Round of 2026 NFL Draft
Peter Woods #99 walks toward the practice field
GettyKansas City Chiefs defensive tackle Peter Woods.
Kansas City focused its draft efforts on the defensive side of the football in 2026, adding defensive tackle Peter Woods late in Round 1 as a potential longterm replacement for Jones, which gives more credence to the notion the Chiefs might move on after this season is finished.
The team also drafted pass-rusher R Mason Thomas early in Round 2 to play off the edge opposite defensive end George Karlaftis, who recently inked a big extension.
It appears that Kansas City is setting itself up for a defensive front that can move beyond Jones next offseason and use some of the savings that creates to replace him with younger talent more interested in playing both as pass rushers and run stoppers.
But that doesn’t mean Jones isn’t gearing up for one last ride with the Chiefs, for whom he has played 11 seasons and with whom he has captured three Super Bowl rings.