It all goes back to the tail end of Monday night’s game, in which the Chiefs ended up losing 31-28 to the Jaguars on a last-minute touchdown.
With 30 seconds left on the clock and down four points, Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence took the snap under center before immediately tripping and falling to the ground twice. In one of the wildest moments of the season thus far, Lawrence got up, shed a tackle, and dove in for the game-winning touchdown.
Jones seemingly watched it just like football fans watching at home. He made no effort to stop Lawrence, literally standing at the line of scrimmage as Lawrence scored with 23 seconds left. Fans immediately questioned the 31-year-old’s effort on the play that ultimately lost the Chiefs the game, bringing their record to 2-3 through five weeks.
“I thought multiple times we had him,” Jones said in a post-game presser. “We had multiple guys there, we just gotta finish that play. It was a fluke play for him to be able to break that many tackles. But yeah, I put it on us as a defense. We gotta finish.”
On Wednesday, Chiefs head coach Andy Reid chimed in on Jones’ reasoning for his lack of effort.
“You can’t think that the guy is down. You can’t think that. You have to play the play,” he said. “He knows. He’s been around this thing for a long time. That’s really what it came down to.”
Reid followed it up, saying he has no message to Jones or the rest of his players about the use of social media after Jones had deactivated his accounts.
It’s yet another misfortune for the 10-year veteran. Jones has recorded just one sack and seven tackles for the Chiefs in 2025. Part of it is the consistent double-teams, or even triple-teams, that Jones is facing, but that’s what happens when you’re a six-time Pro Bowler and All-Pro.
Vibes in Kansas City aren’t exactly great right now, but they can’t afford to hang onto their heartbreaking Week 5 loss and its ensuing drama. The Chiefs host the 4-1 Detroit Lions on Sunday, meaning they need every ounce of focus and motivation they can muster up to avoid a 2-4 record after six weeks. Kick off is set for 8:30 p.m. EST on Sunday.
