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Top 20 NFL breakout candidates in 2017

By John Buhler

Oct 23, 2016; Kansas City, MO, USA; Kansas City Chiefs defensive tackle Chris Jones (95) is introduced prior to a game against the New Orleans Saints at Arrowhead Stadium. The Chiefs won 27-21. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 23, 2016; Kansas City, MO, USA; Kansas City Chiefs defensive tackle Chris Jones (95) is introduced prior to a game against the New Orleans Saints at Arrowhead Stadium. The Chiefs won 27-21. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports /
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Oct 23, 2016; Kansas City, MO, USA; Kansas City Chiefs defensive tackle Chris Jones (95) is introduced prior to a game against the New Orleans Saints at Arrowhead Stadium. The Chiefs won 27-21. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 23, 2016; Kansas City, MO, USA; Kansas City Chiefs defensive tackle Chris Jones (95) is introduced prior to a game against the New Orleans Saints at Arrowhead Stadium. The Chiefs won 27-21. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports /
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Chris Jones

Defensive Tackle, Kansas City Chiefs

The Kansas City Chiefs were in a bad spot with regards to the 2017 salary cap. Kansas City had some tough decisions to make. Cutting running back Jamaal Charles was hard and so was letting defensive tackle Dontari Poe walk. However, Chiefs general manager John Dorsey anticipated Poe’s departure and drafted Chris Jones out of Mississippi State last spring.

Jones played in all 16 games for the Chiefs last year, with 17 tackles and two quarterback sacks. He is a big guy at 6-foot-6 and 310 pounds, poised to take over that starting role vacated by Poe up front. One could argue that Jones could end up being the more productive player at the end of the day.

Poe showed signs of brilliance up front with the Chiefs defensive line for years, but back surgery and uneven play over the past two years kept the team from giving him the franchise tag. He signed with Atlanta for one year and the Chiefs were able to re-sign the guy they wanted to all along in free safety Eric Berry.

Jones will make the Chiefs’ front-seven a bit more malleable. If he can play with a consistent combination of both power and speed, he could be a future Pro Bowl player up front for the Chiefs. In short, Kansas City could afford to lose Poe in free agency because Jones looks to be the real deal on the front.

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