The franchise tag deadline has passed and the Arizona Cardinals opted not to use theirs on their all-time leader in sacks, Chandler Jones.
Jones, 32, is currently set to hit the open market after he and the organization failed to reach an agreement on a contract extension last offseason, where he reportedly requested a trade out of Arizona.
The Cardinals opted to let fellow edge rusher Haason Reddick walk in free agency after a 12.5-sack season, and the assumption was that money was to be spent on Jones, who was returning from a season-ending biceps injury. The argument against Reddick was that he had only played one season at outside linebacker, but that argument was invalidated after he posted 11 sacks with the Panthers this season. It remains in question what the front office’s plans for the position are if they let both Reddick and Jones walk.
