Which teams could make an attempt to acquire Arizona Cardinals pass rusher Chandler Jones before the start of the 2021 season?
Chandler Jones has been a staple for the Arizona Cardinals on the defensive side of the ball for the last five seasons. Jones is easily one of the most dynamic pass rushers to ever put on a Cardinals uniform.
No Arizona player since 1994 has accumulated more sacks than Jones has in the last five years (61) and he only needs six more sacks in a Cardinals uniform to become the franchise’s all-time record holder for career sacks.
However, he might have already played his last snap for Arizona. Unfortunately, Jones was not in attendance at the team’s recent mandatory minicamp, and this isn’t a good sign for his future with the organization.
With his current contract set to expire in 2022, the 31-year-old pass rusher is looking for a new deal from the Cardinals before suiting up for them ever again.
If Arizona is unwilling to give Jones what he’s looking for, he could ask for the team to trade him. If this ends up happening, who are a few teams that could be interested in making a deal for the veteran pass rusher?
Baltimore Ravens
Despite the current presence of Lamar Jackson, defense is still typically what comes to mind when most people think of the Baltimore Ravens.
The Ravens performed well on defense once again in 2020, but they lost some key performers this offseason. Linebacker Matthew Judon left to sign with the New England Patriots while Yannick Ngakoue decided to leave Baltimore as well and he joined the Las Vegas Raiders.
Judon and Ngakoue accounted for almost 25 percent of the Ravens‘ sack total last season, so they will have to figure out how to make up for their losses in 2021.
One way to maintain their defense’s pass-rushing abilities would be to make a trade with the Cardinals for Chandler Jones.
Recent experiments with safety Earl Thomas and wide receiver Dez Bryant shows that Baltimore isn’t afraid to take a chance on a player on the wrong side of 30. So perhaps Jones can be the next notable veteran to get an opportunity from the Ravens.
He would get to join a defense with former Arizona defensive lineman Calais Campbell and Baltimore is probably already very familiar with Jones, since his brother, Arthur, suited up for them from 2010 to 2013.
Miami Dolphins
Connections are a big thing in the NFL and current Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores was on the defensive coaching staff for the New England Patriots when Chandler Jones played for the six-time world champions from 2012 to 2015.
With Flores leading the way last season, the Dolphins were able to finish with five more wins than their total amount of victories in 2019. In his third year with Miami, Flores will be looking to get the team back in the playoffs for just the second time since 2008.
The Dolphins finished last season with the ninth-most sacks in the NFL. But Miami lost two linebackers to free agency this year who played key roles in the team’s pass rush last season in Kyle Van Noy and Shaq Lawson. This duo combined to bring down the opposing quarterback 10 times in 2020 for the Dolphins.
To make up for these departures, Flores and Miami could make a call to the Cardinals to see what it could cost to acquire Jones.
The Dolphins managed to grab former University of Miami pass rusher Jaelan Phillips in the first round of this year’s NFL Draft, so they are hoping he can help maintain the team’s success at pressuring the opposing quarterback next season.
But a combination of Phillips with the current Arizona linebacker could potentially give the Dolphins one of the top pass-rushing duos in the league in 2021.
New York Giants
Trading someone as talented as Chandler Jones to a team in the same conference is likley not something that the Cardinals would prefer. But if there is one division that features some of the least frightening teams in the NFC this year it would be the NFC East.
One plus of sending Jones to a team like the New York Giants is that Arizona wouldn’t have to go against him during the upcoming season unless the two teams ended up facing each other in the playoffs. In fact, there’s a good chance that the Cardinals won’t have to face the Giants until 2023, and who knows if Jones would even still be on their roster or not by then.
Like Brian Flores with the Dolphins, New York also has a connection to the Arizona linebacker from his days with the Patriots.
Current Giants head coach Joe Judge was also on New England’s coaching staff during Jones’ entire tenure with the franchise. So Judge knows what the Cardinals pass rusher could add to his defense next season.
Currently in line to begin the 2021 campaign as New York’s outside linebackers are Ryan Anderson and rookie Azeez Ojulari. Anderson has six career sacks since entering the NFL in 2017 and there’s a good chance that Ojulari is going to experience some hiccups during his first year with the Giants.
Jones would give New York another established pass rusher to pair with defensive lineman Leonard Williams and the team’s chances of qualifying for the playoffs for the first time since 2016 would definitely go up if they found a way to add the Arizona linebacker to their roster.