A franchise doesn’t want to be on a list regarding the contracts in the NFL; however, Bleacher Report’s Alex Kay writes that the Silver and Black have one of the worst contracts in the league with Chandler Jones. Speaking of players on the Las Vegas Raiders’ defense, Divine Deablo is wearing the green dot during minicamp. Now he’s ready to be the group leader that has high expectations heading into the 2023 NFL season.
Is Chandler Jones’ contract among the worst in the NFL?
Kay put together a top 10 list regarding the worst contracts across the league. As for Jones, the veteran pass rusher is top three behind the Los Angeles Rams’ Matthews Stafford and Denver Broncos’ Russell Wilson.
Jones had 10.5 sacks with the Arizona Cardinals in 2021, so the 33-year-old was supposed to bolster the Raiders’ pass rush. However, Jones only registered 4.5 sacks in 2022.
“While Jones was dominant for much of his time in the desert—he recorded 71.5 sacks in 84 games with Arizona—he started to slip towards the end of that tenure,” Kay wrote. “He missed 11 games during the 2020 campaign with injury and while he notched 10.5 sacks upon his return the following year, much of that production came during a five-sack performance in Week 1. He notched just one sack over his final four appearances for the Cardinals.
The drop-off was noticeable for Chandler Jones
“That drop-off didn’t deter the Raiders from doling out a big contract to a player well on the wrong side of 30. Despite playing with one of the league’s top up-and-coming edge rushers in Maxx Crosby, Jones’ inaugural season in Vegas went poorly. He finished with a meager 4.5 sacks in 15 contests while earning a pedestrian 63.8 PFF grade for his efforts.”
Jones has two years left on his contract. The former Cardinals star initially signed a contract worth $52.5 million over three years, including $34 million guaranteed.
Divine Deablo is ready to lead after a season-ending injury
Deablo’s 2022 season ended in Jacksonville last Nov. 6 when his right forearm had been caught between Denzel Perryman and Travis Etienne Jr.’s helmets.
Nonetheless, the 24-year-old is ready to put the injury behind him and lead the Raiders’ defense. The Virginia Tech product used his time away from the field to study and prepare for this season.
“I didn’t think my arm was broken,” Deablo said last week (h/t ESPN). “The X-ray came and it turned out to be broken. Of course I was down, I was sad … I knew I was going to miss the rest of the season, but I saw it as an opportunity.
“I just studied the game; I worked harder and this offseason I stayed here the whole time just in hopes that it will work out on the field.
“Personally, I feel like a lot of people would just, lack of a better term, just fold. They’ll just lay down and come to practice, not ready to practice. I know I’m a rookie, but I don’t want my teammates to do that. I’m going to make sure they’re ready to practice and we bring that intensity every day.”
*Top Photo: Ethan Miller/Getty Images
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