Adam Teicher, ESPN Workforce Essayist
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Travis Kelce made a plea to Chris Jones to go back to the Kansas City Chiefs on his unedited podcast, announcing of his teammate’s resolution to store out, “I just don’t get it.”
“Chris, can you please come back?” Kelce mentioned at the “New Heights with Jason and Travis Kelce” podcast, which he seems on steadily together with his brother, who performs for the Philadelphia Eagles. “You’re really scaring me, man. I don’t get it. You must know something that I don’t know because I just don’t get it. I really want to get another Super Bowl ring with you, brother. This is me bargaining you to just come back and play football for the Chiefs. Please, we need you. We need you bad, and I don’t know what the situation is.
“He’s simply the most efficient defensive participant within the league presently. He’s deserving of the entire cash on this planet. Chris, I like you. Please come again now.”
Jones has one season left on the four-year deal he signed with the Chiefs in 2020 but has yet to report as he seeks an improved contract. Jones was to be paid $80 million over the four years, and the $20 million average would make him the ninth-highest-paid defensive tackle this season.
Chiefs coach Andy Reid said he wouldn’t criticize Jones’ decision.
“Chris has selected to advance this direction,” Reid said Friday in his first expansive comments on Jones’ holdout. “Some alternative guys have selected to get their trade in finished and are available and play games. I’m no longer right here to criticize a method or the alternative. We’ve had a dozen of good fortune with the fellows that we’ve got, and we advance with it.
“Other than that, I take the distractions and throw them out the door and let’s get on with what’s real.”
Reid’s feedback appear to suggest the Chiefs are making ready to play games their season opener Thursday towards the Detroit Lions with out Jones. This date they traded with the Las Vegas Raiders for defensive take on Neil Farrell as a part of the option to fill Jones’ spot.
“Chris is a great player,” Reid mentioned. “We’ve got other good players. They’ll have to step their game up to fill the role. … Everybody just has to play their best, and then you work through it. But to think that you’re gonna fill in for Chris, that’s not what you’re doing.”
Reid mentioned Jones most probably wouldn’t want a lot week to arrange to play games in a sport then he reported.
“One thing about Chris is he keeps himself in good shape,” Reid mentioned. “I haven’t seen him, but I’d anticipate that he’d come back in relatively good shape. … As long as he is physically in good shape, you can kind of start working him in and get him going, then you play it by ear after that and see where he’s at.”
