On Tuesday, Kansas City Chiefs defensive tackle Chris Jones sent fans into a frenzy with a one-emoji tweet, acknowledging a rumor that he could leave KC for an AFC West rival. On Thursday, Jones took a different angle, tweeting a now-iconic photo of Chiefs head coach Andy Reid on top of him as the duo celebrated winning Super Bowl LVIII over the San Francisco 49ers. This time, Jones tweeted more than an emoji… but barely.
“KC……”, Jones tweeted with the photo. (That’s six periods or two ellipses, if you’re counting for dramatic effect.)
Let’s get investigative. Jones didn’t just tweet the photo. It’s actually, apparently, a screenshot of the photo, which includes the rest of (assumedly) Jones’s phone activity at the time, which includes an hour-long phone call. Is the screenshot from today? Could he be on the phone with his agents? Reid? General manager Brett Veach? Is he celebrating a pending extension with this tweet, or is this actually bad news, with the tweet being his way of saying goodbye to Kansas City? Most of all… does any of it matter?
Let’s go back to Tuesday again. Here’s what I wrote two days ago, regarding the bad-vibes handshake-emoji tweet:
The one part of Tuesday’s sideshow that seems less than ideal is the fact that some of the Jones contract sentiments had been trending in a positive direction through the first days of March, and now the two “news” items are Garafolo’s tidbit and Jones’s tweet. Jones, in this instance, is doing something he did last offseason too: tweeting at fans with opinions about his contract situation. Check the time stamp on this one: Sept. 10, 2023. Jones signed a short one-year deal to remain with the Chiefs on Sept. 11.
Jones also shared something telling back in Nov. 2023, as the Chiefs prepared to face the Miami Dolphins in Germany.
“As much as I love Tyreek [Hill], sometimes we just talk a lot,” Jones said. “We just talk, talk, talk. I understand he wants to rile his crowd up, and I’ll support it.”
Jones is no stranger to social media, press conference podiums, or any aspect of being an NFL superstar with a high-profile negotiation. He was the main character of the Chiefs’ last offseason, and until we have reports of a long-term deal being signed, fans should take his posts with a grain of salt.
