We are just a week away from the official opening of the NFL’s new year, which means that free-agent contracts finally can be signed, and while the focus of the Raiders has mostly been on potential fits at quarterback, the fact is, there are a handful of other holes on this team. One of them is the interior of the defensive line, and the Raiders defense could potentially pull a double-whammy there by pulling off a major move: signing Chiefs free agent Chris Jones.
The Chiefs opted not to put a franchise tag on Jones, though the team is still looking to re-sign him somehow. But if the Raiders could convince him to come to Las Vegas and anchor a defense that showed tremendous improvement over the course of last season, they’d not only bolster their 2024 hopes, they would put a major dent in the defending Super Bowl champs.
Pro Football Focus has the Raiders of one of two (with the Bears) “landing spots” for Jones in free agency.
“The Raiders’ defense finished the second half of the season on an absolute tear, but a few key contributors on the interior defensive line are pending free agents. A duo of Maxx Crosby and Chris Jones would immediately become one of the league’s best,” the site wrote last week.
Raiders Defense Closed ‘On a Tear’
Jones is a hot commodity. He is rated the top overall free-agent on the market this year by Pro Football Focus, CBS Sports and The 33rd Team, a seldom-seen designation for an interior defensive lineman. But such is Jones’ ability to disrupt and control a game, as well as his consistency at age 29.
He will not be a cheap signee, but the Raiders have ample caps space to make a deal happen. PFF projects him to warrant a contract of four years and $120 million, or $30 million per year, while Spotrac has him coming in at three years and $85.5 million, or $28.8 million.
Crosby and fellow end Malcolm Koonce closed the year as a fearsome duo, but on the interior, the Raiders had problems. No defensive linemen landed a PFF grade above 70, and the best the line had to offer was mistake-prone Jerry Tillery, who had a grade of 68.8 (40th out of 130 D-linemen in the NFL).
Jones has had a grade of 83 or higher and has been among the Top 7 defensive linemen in the league for the last seven seasons.
Chris Jones Admired LVR Facilities During Super Bowl
In sizing up Jones as a free agent, PFF wrote of him, “It’s rare for a player of Jones’ caliber to reach unrestricted free agency. … Jones is not only one of the best interior pass-rushers in the game right now; he’s one of the best ever. He is also capable of lining up outside of tackles as a 5-technique, bending around the edge and getting home.”
That’s exactly the kind of playmaker on the line the Raiders need.
Also of note is the fact that Jones did not exactly sound opposed to returning to Las Vegas when he was there last month for the Super Bowl, where he won his third ring. Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal spoke to Jones about the Raiders.
As Bonsignore wrote on Twitter/X: “Chris Jones (pending FA) to me about the @Raiders facility: ‘The Raiders have the best facility in the league. Very first-class organization. New equipment, new facility. Much respect to the owner and the organization.’ He laughed when I said Raiders fans would love hearing that.”
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