Chandler Jones didn't take part in the Cardinals' mandatory minicamp this offseason, although Kliff Kingsbury acknowledged the team and Jones had talked prior to that (and I'm guessing came to some sort of understanding.) At no point this season has Jones said why, although it wasn't difficult to speculate it had to do with his contract, and the fact he is about to start the final year of his current deal.

ESPN's Jeremy Fowler reported Sunday morning that Jones, because of his desire for a new contract, asked the Cards for a trade this offseason. When that happened was not specified. A lot has happened this offseason, though, so the timing would make a difference. While Jones didn't take part in minicamp, he did take part in the team's "media day" in which they shot promotional pictures and video for the upcoming season (as well as doing some social media content) the Monday that week and Jones was all-in for that.

The new CBA does not allow for teams to waive fines for players who don't show up to training camp, so it's unlikely Jones won't be at camp this week. The contract was always going to be a storyline, whether this trade request reached the light of day or not. Certainly it'll be brought up whenever Jones speaks to the media. It sure feels like whatever the future might hold, Jones will play for the Cards in 2021.

My first thought when I saw Fowler's tweet took me back to what D.J. Humphries said about Jones' situation during minicamp. It's business. I get it. Any team that would trade for someone like Jones now would want a new contract in place, so it would force the action. It's understandable why Jones, 31, wants to secure a new deal coming off a serious injury. It's also understandable why the Cardinals at this point are wait-and-see. Whenever it happened, it's not the same situation of Patrick Peterson when Peterson wanted a trade simply because he didn't like the direction the Cards were headed in 2018.