Jones vs. 1st Rounder + $20m

[duncan_idaho]

Originally Posted by saphojunkie

Protecting Mahomes is priority #1. Period.

Here is how I see it:

Chris Jones - elite value as interior pass rusher.

Chiefs defense - uses stunts to create interior pass rush, so there is no guarantee Jones is even RUSHING from the interior.

if creating interior pass rush is the fastest way to success against the pass for defenses, then stopping that interior rush is the fastest way to success for the offense. FACT: If you keep Mahomes protected, he will succeed against every single defense.

The goal for this offseason is not to keep Chris Jones. It is to use Chris Jones to help the team win. If you cannot get good enough value in a trade and decide to sign him, so be it. But absolutely, positively, the best way to use Chris Jones is as a commodity to be traded.

With a simple first and third, you can land a starting CB and OL. With the cap space, you can land more speed on defense, depth at linebacker, and likely a swing OL.

That's not counting what you can do with your own first rounder this year. Filling ONE position with $20M is not how this team wins long term. Filling FOUR starting positions by letting go of one is how you keep your roster young, cheap, healthy, and talented.

Bye, Chris. Thank you for the super bowl, and thank you in advance for the draft capital and cap room.

That’s one path. It isn’t the only path, IMO.

I’ll get into it either way and support it. Great players raise the game of the guys around them.

If the Chiefs keep Jones, they can find a lot of success stories like Emmanuel Ogbah - guys who fit the scheme and give them good production in 1x1 matchups.

They also can get away with a little less talent in the back seven. Again, scheme fits are important, but they can get by without a true lockdown corner of the front 4 is dominant.

Flip side, yeah, if they can move Jones for a 1st and 3rd this year, that’s great value for him. But is that deal out there? Hard to say. They’re saying the right things publicly to maximize their leverage with trading him, though. I’ve had fun playing around with drafts where KC has 4-5 picks in the top 100, too. They can infuse a lot of young talent and also set themselves up to have a big draft class again next year.

Both approaches can be right if executed properly.

I’d be less confident in spending big on Jones if Veach hadn’t shown such a nice eye for finding undervalued talent. Rankin, Ogbah, Ward, etc.