Chandler Jones Trade Rumors: Cardinals OLB Requested Deal; Unhappy with Contract

All-Pro pass-rusher Chandler Jones has reportedly requested a trade from the Arizona Cardinals.

According to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler, Jones is unhappy with his contract and his future with the Cardinals. Despite the trade request, Fowler noted that the Cards don't want to deal him and expect Jones to report to training camp.

Jones is set to enter the final year of his contract in 2021 and will make $15.5 million, per Spotrac.

Since entering the NFL as a first-round pick of the New England Patriots in 2012, Jones has been one of the league's premier pass-rushers.

The Cardinals signed another top-flight pass-rusher in J.J. Watt this offseason, and the expectation was that they would have perhaps the best pass-rushing duo in the NFL in 2021.

Jones' 97 sacks since 2012 are the most in the NFL, and Watt is right behind him in second with 95.5 during that same span.

The 31-year-old Jones is a three-time Pro Bowler, two-time first-team All-Pro and one-time Super Bowl champion. He has registered double-digit sacks in a season six times, including a career-high 19 in 2019.

The Cardinals acquired Jones from the Patriots prior to the 2016 season, and he proceeded to average 15 sacks per season over his first four years in Arizona.

Last season, Jones finished with a career-low one sack, as a torn bicep limited him to just five games.

The Cardinals are under no obligation to trade Jones, but if they don't intend to sign him to an extension, trading him before or during the 2021 season would be the only way to avoid losing him for nothing.

Since the Cards have one of the best rosters in the NFL on paper, however, they may prefer to keep him in hopes of making a run to the playoffs and perhaps even the Super Bowl.

The Cardinals have not reached the playoffs since 2015, but they went 8-8 last season after going 5-10-1 in quarterback Kyler Murray's rookie campaign, meaning there are high expectations for them to take the next step and become a playoff team in 2021.