Coming up with the perfect contract offer for the Las Vegas Raiders to land DT Chris Jones in free agency
The Las Vegas Raiders need to jump from a fringe playoff team to a team that can compete yearly. They were just a few games away from being in the playoffs last season, and when you look at who won it all, there's no telling what would have happened if they had made it. Now, […]
The Las Vegas Raiders need to jump from a fringe playoff team to a team that can compete yearly. They were just a few games away from being in the playoffs last season, and when you look at who won it all, there's no telling what would have happened if they had made it. Now, I won't say they would have won the Super Bowl, but maybe they would have made some noise and won a game.
To make that next step, they will have to be nearly perfect in free agency and the 2024 NFL Draft. First on the schedule is free agency, where they could be big spenders. The Raiders have a lot of money to spend, and getting Jimmy Garoppolo off of the books certainly helps.
While the offense is the unit that struggled the most last year, the defense still needs the most roster help. The Raiders have to get some help around Maxx Crosby, so he doesn't have to do as much as he did last year. Sure, you want him to win the Defensive Player of the Year Award, but you also don't want him to be burnt out by the time the postseason is here.
So, one of the more splashy plays the Raiders could make with their $55 million in available cap space would be to go and get the best defensive player available in free agency. That would be none other than the Raiders' biggest rival, the Kansas City Chiefs' defensive tackle Chris Jones.
And, before you say anything about him being too expensive – I get it. He is expensive, for sure. However, the Raiders could offer the perfect contract for Jones. Here is some info from A to Z Sports on Jones and his contract situation:
Jones is one of the premier interior defensive linemen in the NFL right now. His 198 quarterback pressures since 2021 is second among his position group to only the incomparable Aaron Donald. With 32 sacks and 35 tackles for loss over that same time frame Jones is bringing down passers at a faster clip than many of the league'sleague's premier edge rushers. Jones's 17.6% pass rush win rate ranks 4th in the NFL this year. Jones will be 30 in 2024, but he's still a force multiplier at a premium position where most players are not capable of rushing the passer consistently. With the recent extensions of Daron Payne, Jeffery Simmons, and Dexter Lawrence, all clearing $22.5 million APY, Jones is now set up to give himself a substantial raise over the $20 million/year he was earning on his last deal. Jones will likely be looking to come within the ballpark of Donald's record-setting $31,667,666 APY deal, which currently sits 32% higher than the next closest deal. He won't get it. But look for him to nestle his next contract right in between those two at around $27.5 million per year.
The Raiders have the ninth-most cap space to play with, according to Spotrac. If they were to offer Jones a deal, it could look something like this, based on the A to Z Sports Free Agency and Projections:
Projected Contract: 4 yrs $110M, $27.5M APY, $65M fully GTD
Year One Cap Hit: $13M.
It seems like a lot of other outlets are projecting Jones to get a contract that would pay him $30 million a year, but not in this case. Last year, when Jones held out for the Chiefs, they ended up agreeing on a deal that was virtually the same as his tag number but included a ton of incentives. He hit on most of them.
This contract is lower than maybe what he wants in terms of AAV, but it could include incentives so that he is still getting that extra money. It doesn't quite show up on the books in terms of cap number. I think both sides would love that, and then you get the best defensive tackle in the league paired with the best defensive end in the league. Everyone would be running from the Silver and Black.
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