Chiefs All-Pro Chris Jones hoping he might 'skip out on training camp' again

Chris Jones didn’t partake in a single training camp practice last year whilst holding out for a new contract.

This time, he’s not pursuing another contract, but he is hoping to have additional days off from camp.

The defensive powerhouse, who is about to turn 30, is fresh from his consecutive All-Pro seasons and thinks that a little work during the summer could be advantageous. He expressed these sentiments to head coach Andy Reid recently and is now waiting to see the outcome.

“I’ve already been talking to Andy about, ‘Let me skip out on training camp. I’m a little older, right?'” Jones told The Kansas City Star’s Jesse Newell on Wednesday from the defensive lineman’s youth football camp. “I can feel it. I can feel when we have a day on training camp. Give me like two days off and one day on then, and we maybe can work something out, you know?”

Jones says he’s still waiting for Big Red’s final decision.

Jones, who will turn 30 on July 3, said, “He just looked at me. So the conversation is still ongoing.”

Jones held out of training camp last year along with the Chiefs’ Week 1 game — a loss to the Detroit Lions — as he vied for a new contract. Jones and Kansas City agreed to a one-year deal in September, a Band-Aid of sorts. Jones promptly delivered his fifth straight Pro Bowl season, posting 10.5 sacks and 29 QB hits before once again providing clutch performances aplenty during the Chiefs’ Super Bowl run. Along with celebrating his third Super Bowl triumph, Jones also got the massive extension he’d been hoping for when he inked a five-year, $158 million deal that made him the richest interior defensive lineman in the league — both in total salary and average annual value.

Jones, who has long been the face of the Chiefs defense, could be argued as the best defensive player in the NFL. This argument is further reinforced when considering his consistent performance in making big plays, postseason after postseason.

So, maybe it wouldn’t be harmful to have a bit less wear and tear during the summer. It didn’t appear to be at the end of the 2023 season.

Jones said, “I can manage a schedule of one day on, a day off, or a day on and half a day off. I find it quite enjoyable.”

Despite prior negotiations and missed practices, both past and future, Jones insists that his approach remains consistent. His goal is to achieve peak physical condition and help position the Chiefs optimally for a championship win.

Jones said, “My mindset has always been consistent. It’s about being in the best shape possible, engaging with the community, and improving oneself, along with doing a good deed every week. Despite varying contract situations over the years, my mindset has remained unchanged. I just grow a little wiser and gain a few more gray hairs. We’re going to keep this going.”