KC Chiefs DT Chris Jones Returns With ‘Special’ Performance in 2023 Debut

Multiple members of the Chiefs organization applauded Jones for returning with a vengeance on Sunday.

The Kansas City Chiefs got a couple of extra helpers back for their Week 2 outing against the Jacksonville Jaguars: tight end Travis Kelce and defensive tackle Chris Jones. While the former undoubtedly played a significant role in the win, it was the latter who emerged as the club's best defensive player after firmly establishing himself as exactly that in recent seasons.

For Jones, this game marked another important stop on what's been a long road for him. The star interior lineman didn't participate in the Chiefs' offseason program and dragged his holdout all the way through the preseason and Week 1 of the regular season due to a lack of traction on a long-term contract. While that multi-year security still isn't secured, Jones did get an opportunity via a new one-year deal to earn a potential raise and recoup what he's forfeited in fines and his first missed game check. Returning to practice earlier in the week, Kansas City made it apparent that the 29-year-old would be able to play on Sunday.

With that said, the Chiefs were not clear on how much they'd be playing Jones. When asked about a specific snap count this week, head coach Andy Reid and defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo both shuffled around the idea a bit. After Kansas City's 17-9 win, Reid admitted that he thought Jones could fulfill somewhere around 50% of available defensive snaps. Praising his star defender, Reid implied that Jones managed to outperform even his own head coach's expectations. 

"I figured he'd be able to play about half a game," Reid said. "We shuttled him in and out, he did a great job. I've mentioned this before: Over the years here, he's learned to keep himself in shape. When I saw him out at practice, he was moving around pretty good and his endurance seemed good so I felt comfortable that he'd go in and be able to do his thing. Maybe not to that level but that was a heck of a job, though, by him."

In addition to getting pressure on Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence multiple times throughout the game, Jones recorded 1.5 sacks on the afternoon. One of them was a critical stop to force a turnover on downs. On top of that, Jones also had a batted pass. He lined up both on the interior and as a pseudo-defensive end against Jacksonville, another testament to his skill set as a player. For him to do that without a proper offseason, preseason or even a long ramp-up period is impressive. According to quarterback Patrick Mahomes, it's even more than that. 

"Crazy," Mahomes said. "Just to be able to make that impact on a game after not being in training camp... you can work out as much as you want off the field, I know this. To be able to come to Jacksonville where it's hot and humid and just dominate against a great team, it's special. It truly is special, and I'm glad he's on my team." 

Jones had every reason to make up for lost time on Sunday, as he has specific benchmarks in his contract that will allow him to maximize his earnings. These incentives include statistical accomplishments for sacks, playing time bonuses for his percentage of snaps played, as well as individual and team triggers such as All-Pro, Defensive Player of the Year and the Super Bowl. It was in Jones's best interest to hit the ground running and make up for lost time. 

As a Week 3 matchup with the Chicago Bears is on the horizon, Jones will soon make his home debut for the 2023 campaign. Now that he's back in the fold and performing at a high level, he and the team can move forward and look to continue stacking impressive defensive performances. Jones picked up right where he left off at the end of last season, and Kelce could barely tell it was his first in-game action in over seven months. 

"Looked like the 9-5 that I know."

Read More: Chiefs’ Defense Receives Heaps of Praise After Key Win Over Jaguars