Report: Cardinals not expected to use franchise tag on Chandler Jones

It looks like Chandler Jones will have his choice of where to play next season.

The Cardinals are not expected to use the franchise tag on Jones, per NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. The deadline to use the tag on a player is March 8.

"I'm told [he's] not expected to be franchised, not for any other reason except the number's just incredibly high -- 25 million dollars," Rapoport said. "That doesn't make sense for the cash-strapped Arizona Cardinals, a year after they really went for it and would like to go for it again."

Rapoport does point out that this doesn't rule out Jones playing in Arizona again in 2022 and possibly beyond. The two sides could work out a contract that offers Jones more long-term flexibility in exchange for providing a lesser cap hit in 2022 for the Cardinals.

Of course, cash rules everything. If another team comes calling with a lucrative offer, it could be hard for Jones to turn down.

"They want to bring him back, I know that. It's just really a matter of what is the number going to be?" Rapoport said. "Considering his age, is he able to get a free agent deal kind of in the upper-teens where so many of the elite pass-rushers want, or does the price come down a little bit to where the Arizona Cardinals cap-wise and cash-wise could do it?"

The franchise tag figure for a linebacker in 2022 is projected by Spotrac to be around $18.5 million, but because Jones was franchised once by the Cardinals in the past, his figure is calculated differently. His number would be 120 percent of his previous season's salary, which comes out to around $25 million as Rapoport outlined.

Arizona has always been hesitant to use the tag, as only two Cardinals have been tagged in the last decade: Calais Campbell in 2012 and Jones in 2017. It's also worth pointing out that Jones requested a trade prior to last season due to contract concerns, though he did ultimately play for Arizona, helping them make the playoffs.

If the Cardinals can work out a deal with Jones, they'd be getting back the anchor of their defense. He's made three Pro Bowls and two All-Pro first teams over his six years in Arizona, and in 2021 logged 10.5 sacks.