Chris Jones is a monster in the middle of the Kansas City Chiefs defense. There is simply no one better at defensive tackle than the Houston native right now. He has been named a First-Team All-Pro in each of the last three seasons, becoming just the 10th DT to achieve that since the NFL-AFL merger in 1970.
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Jones was another in a long line of draft-day steals for the Chiefs, selected in the second round out of Mississippi State back in 2016. It took him a couple of years to find his rhythm, but once he did, he became unstoppable. He has made the Pro Bowl every year from 2019 to 2024 and earned Second-Team All-Pro recognition in 2018, 2020, and 2021.
Despite playing defensive tackle — a position not typically known for pass-rushing stats — Jones has recorded 9+ sacks in five of the last seven seasons. His 80.5 career sacks rank him among the top 15 all-time for DTs. With all that talent and those accolades, you’d think Jones was born for this. But, believe it or not, he had “no desire to play football” as a kid.
It was Jones’ grandmother, Flora Evans, who saw his potential and pushed him to reach it. He spoke about her influence and the impact she had on his life in his episode of the Chiefs documentary Heart of the Kingdom.
“I don’t think there’s enough flowers that I can give for my grandmother, Flora Evans. She would always tell me, ‘If you want to be the best, you’ve got to be able to put the most work in,'” an emotional Jones said.
“That kinda stayed with me throughout life: moving out of my parents’ place, moving in with her, sleeping on a two-seater couch. Kind of instilled the will of having faith, belief, and putting God first.”
The documentary shines a light on the strong black women who have impacted Chiefs players, staff, cheerleaders, and more throughout their lives. Jones’ story was particularly touching, as he lived with his grandmother during his formative years.
While he wanted to play basketball, the football coach at his school saw some potential in him on the gridiron. Grandma Flora saw it too.
“My whole goal moving to Houston, Mississippi, was to play for my basketball coach. I really had no desire to play football, but the coach wanted me to play, I felt like I could volunteer to play. Throughout time, I found the hidden talent that I didn’t know I had,” he recounted before adding,
“And I think my grandmother seen it before anyone. Thank you for everything. I know I don’t get to say it often, but I love you and appreciate you for all the life lessons. I can never repay you, even though I try to… I just wanted to say it again: I love you, and thank you.”
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Star quarterback Patrick Mahomes also made a similarly moving video tribute to his own grandmother for the series, along with many other people in the Chiefs’ organization. The series debuted on March 22 and episodes can be found and viewed at Chiefs.com.
