Chiefs DT Chris Jones won't have a chance to earn his biggest contract incentive in Super Bowl LVIII
Kansas City Chiefs DT Chris Jones won't have the same financial motivations heading into Super Bowl LVIII against the San Francisco 49ers that he's had in some recent games. Jones held out of Week 1 of the 2023 NFL season to secure a long-term contract extension. Instead, he earned a reworked one-year deal that could help […]
Kansas City Chiefs DT Chris Jones won't have the same financial motivations heading into Super Bowl LVIII against the San Francisco 49ers that he's had in some recent games.
Jones held out of Week 1 of the 2023 NFL season to secure a long-term contract extension. Instead, he earned a reworked one-year deal that could help him recoup some of the money he lost during his holdout and more.
So far, Jones has earned $4.25 million of his contract incentives, only missing out on the $500K incentive for 15 sacks. He already earned $1M for exceeding 35 percent playing time and an additional $1M for exceeding 50 percent playing time. He infamously earned his $1.25M incentive for 10 sacks in Week 18 against the Chargers. He also earned a final $1M for earning a First-Team All-Pro selection and reaching a Super Bowl.
Jones' final contract incentive is already out of reach
Unfortunately for Jones, his last and biggest contract incentive, which involves a Super Bowl win, isn't within reach. One of Jones' biggest goals has been to earn Defensive Player of the Year honors. He set that goal himself for the 2023 NFL season after finishing the year prior with 15.5 sacks.
To earn his final $2M contract incentive, Jones must win Super Bowl LVIII with his teammates and also earn Defensive Player of the Year at the 13th annual NFL Honors ceremony on Thursday, Feb. 8. We already know that's not happening because the NFL announced the five finalists for the award:
- Cowboys CB DaRon Bland
- Raiders DE Maxx Crosby
- Browns DE Myles Garrett
- Steelers LB T.J. Watt
- Cowboys LB Micah Parsons
The situation certainly makes you wonder if Jones could have at least been considered a finalist had he played against the Detroit Lions in Week 1.
Now, there are some financial motivations for winning Super Bowl LVIII, but they're not quite as staggering as the $2M he'll miss out on. Per the NFL-NFLPA collective bargaining agreement, the players on the winning team in the Super Bowl will earn an extra $164K. The players on the losing team earn $89K.
It also wouldn't hurt for him to win off the back of a dominant performance as he once again concludes a contract year.
Chiefs offensive tackles Donovan Smith and Jawaan Taylor don’t fall for 49ers DE Nick Bosa’s bait
They’ll take the extra motivation that San Francisco 49ers DE Nick Bosa gave them, but they’ll give it back on the gridiron instead of on the podium.
