After the Kansas City Chiefs won Super Bowl LVIII, the franchise was faced with a very tough set of circumstances. Specifically on the defensive side of the ball, general manager Brett Veach was likely going to have to choose between two players who just turned in elite seasons. Cornerback L'Jarius Sneed and defensive tackle Chris Jones both needed long-term deals, but most thought that only one could stick around.
Veach ended up signing the latter to a multiyear contract, locking him in for the rest of his prime in Kansas City. Jones has picked up right where he left off this year, which is helping offset the loss of Sneed on the back end of the defense.
Five games in, Jones already has three sacks and seven quarterback hits. The All-Pro interior lineman is doing everything he can against the pass to keep the Chiefs' defense afloat, and it's working. Entering Week 7's game against the San Francisco 49ers, Steve Spagnuolo's unit ranks 10th in EPA per play according to SumerSports. With Jones dominating up the middle, everything else naturally falls into place.
Speaking to the media this week, Spagnuolo explained how impactful that is and why Kansas City appreciates it.
“Well, you could – you saw it last week," Spagnuolo said. "The Saints, I think paid a lot of attention to Chris in the way they protected in the pass game. That’s going to happen a lot, doesn’t happen all the time. Somehow we have to find a way for Chris to win a couple of those even when he’s doubled and when that does happen and they do choose to put a lot of attention on one guy, somewhere in there, somebody’s got a one-on-one, somebody’s got to step up and win and we’ve had a little bit of that, we’d like to have a little bit more of that. I think the other 10 guys on the field appreciate the fact that we have a guy like Chris that demands that kind of attention and possibly can open up something for somebody else."
Through six weeks of the season, Jones ranks in the top three among all defensive tackles in both overall defense grade and pass rush grade according to Pro Football Focus. He also has 28 pressures in 175 pass rush snaps, good for a 16% clip. A season ago, his 75 pressures in 482 opportunities was a 15.6% mark. Although Jones remains somewhat questionable against the run at times, his effectiveness as a pass rusher is second to no one on the interior. He has an AFC Defensive Player of the Week nod, too.
It also rivals any defensive player in the sport. Jones is lapping the field in pressure quality ratio thus far, ranking ahead of elite defensive ends like Myles Garrett, Aidan Hutchinson and Nick Bosa. Slotting in at the No. 3 spot is Tershawn Wharton, who is making the absolute most of his reps alongside Jones. It's an unexpected development, albeit a welcomed one nonetheless. Safety Justin Reid believes Jones helps Wharton and everyone else maximize their opportunities with less attention on them.
"I mean, this guy is taking on three blocks every play," Reid said. "Just a very, very explosive guy [and] a guy that opposing offenses have to have a plan for week in and week out. Not even just the plays that he makes which, he's still making a ton of them, but the plays that he helps everybody else make by attracting so much attention that other guys get opportunities to make plays."
Whatever Jones is doing right now, it's working. Kansas City took a risk by paying such a high-dollar contract to someone who was set to enter his age-30 season, yet he's maintained his level of play and established himself as the game's top defensive tackle.
Jones is the straw that stirs the drink for the Chiefs' defense – just ask one of his coaches or teammates.
