Chiefs Rumors: Chris Jones chooses violence, Brittany Mahomes protests, more

Kansas City Chiefs rumors: When will Chris Jones join the team?

Kansas City Chiefs defensive tackle Chris Jones had 15.5 sacks last season, and wants a new contract. It's a simple enough request. Jones is on the final year of his current deal, where he's set to earn $20 million. However, by playing out his 2023 season, he opens himself up to the possibility of receiving the franchise tag come 2024.

Jones, for his part, is putting the pressure on. The Chiefs star does not want to play on a series of one-year deals, and instead would prefer a long-term contract. Unfortunately, Kansas City does not want to pay Jones his perceived worth. If Jones wants a contract which rivals that of Aaron Donald, he isn't going to receive it.

The former All-Pro is on the wrong side of 30 years old, and thus the challenge of receiving a long-term contract is immense. Brett Veach made it clear he has no intention of trading Jones a few weeks ago.

"“You have to keep in mind that when we did make that move with Tyreek, one of the determining factors was because there was an expected Chris Jones deal,” Veach said. “And so, to do Tyreek, there was a concern of, ‘Would we be able to do Chris?’

“And so that was a moment of time, and it was before the draft, that we hit the reset button. And we’re like, ‘You know, it’s really hard to trade a player the magnitude of Tyreek Hill.’ But we’re following that up with someone just as significant and on the defensive side.”"

- Brett Veach, via Sports Illustrated

Signing Jones to a long-term deal is the ideal scenario for Kansas City, as the defensive line is not a position which necessarily ages out in terms of production. Jones is willing to wait until Week 8, if necessary.

That's...less then ideal. The first eight weeks of the Chiefs season are certainly winnable, with or without Jones. But as Veach willingly admitted, the best version of this KC team is with Jones on it.

Brittany Mahomes takes some shots at the Arizona Cardinals

For those who have watched the 'Quarterback' documentary on Netflix, it's clear the Patrick Mahomes wife, Brittany Mahomes, is a major part of his on-field success. Brittany supports Patrick every step of the way, and vice versa as it pertains to their business ventures.

Sometimes, Brittany Mahomes can take matters a step too far. When attending the team's preseason game against the Cardinals last weekend, Brittany criticized Arizona's attendance, especially in comparison to a football-crazed city like KC.

While we surely understand where Mahomes was coming from -- her husband Patrick is one of the best quarterbacks in football -- it's also a preseason game, and the Cardinals are not very good. You'll have to forgive folks in Arizona for not wanting to watch Colts McCoy and Clayton Tune (who is a real person, I swear).

There isn't much of a reason to watch the Arizona Cardinals right now, as Kyler Murray is out long term due to injury. Mahomes was shocked no one was in attendance. While the NFL is thriving cross-country, Arizona is surely an area they'll struggle to fill the stadium on a regular basis.

Kansas City Chiefs rumors: Battle to make the roster

Ihmir Smith-Marsette is unlikely to make the roster at wideout, but he still has plenty of talent. Smith-Marsette has performed well in training camp, and especially in the Chiefs second preseason game against the Arizona Cardinals.

Smith-Marsette is a classic preseason storyline. By no means will he have an impact on Kansas City's regular season roster, but he could potentially make the practice squad or sign on elsewhere. If any rival front offices were watching the Chiefs preseason contest against Arizona, they surely noticed Smith-Marsette. Arrowhead Addict made a point of his performance this week:

"Smith-Marsette looked like a star against Arizona and the talent is very evident. Smith-Marsette could play real snaps at the NFL level in the right situation and if given the opportunity. Unfortunately for him, though, Smith-Marsette might be a victim of the numbers game.

The issue is that the Chiefs just have too many receivers and not enough spots for them all. Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Kadarius Toney, Skyy Moore, Rashee Rice, and probably Richie James are all locks to make the team. Then there's Justyn Ross who would probably get a spot before Smith-Marsette and Justin Watson who seems like a shoo-in. That's seven receivers right there and Andy Reid already has never kept more than six receivers."

- Josh Fann, Arrowhead Addict

Despite losing Tyreek Hill and JuJu Smith-Schuster in back-to-back offseasons, Kansas City has a lot of young talent at that position. Smith-Marsette is at the wrong place, wrong time for this Chiefs team.

One team's trash is another's treasure, and it's fair to expect Smith-Marsette to make some noise, if not on another roster.