SUPPORT » The Kansas City Chiefs are placing the franchise tag on outs

ide linebacker Dee Ford after the best season of his career Tony Gonzalez Jersey , though that could be just the first step in their dealings with him.The decision was made on Saturday, a person familiar with it told The Associated Press, three days before the league’s deadline for franchising players. But the Chiefs have discussed signing Ford to a long-term deal, and they are open to trade possibilities as they switch their base defenses.The person spoke to The AP on condition of anonymity because the move was not finalized as the paperwork awaited filing. ESPN.com was first to report the Chiefs had made the decision.The franchise tag for an outside linebacker next season is just over $15.4 million, a number the Chiefs could easily fit under the salary cap. But general manager Brett Veach has made it clear since taking over last year that he is open to making any moves that help the overall club.That could mean a long-term contract — the deadline for doing that with a franchise player is July 15 — or trading away one of the league’s top pass rushers.“He had an outstanding season. He was at the top of his game,” Veach said during his year-end discussion with reporters. “When we drafted Dee a few years ago, all those things that we envisioned for him, he kind of showed that he was that player.”But that also came in former defensive coordinator Bob Sutton’s scheme, which is built around a 3-4 base. The Chiefs fired Sutton after an AFC West-winning season culminated in an overtime loss to the Patriots Derrick Thomas Jersey , and hired Steve Spagnuolo to implement a 4-3 scheme.“The one thing he can do, and we all know this, he is an explosive football player that makes a lot of plays,” Spagnuolo said recently. “He’s had some production and if he is here with us, I’ll be excited to have him and be excited to work with him.”Ford was the Chiefs’ first-round pick in 2014 out of Auburn, but he struggled with injuries and the adjustment to the NFL his first couple seasons. He only played in six games with two sacks in 2017, but had a career-best 13 sacks and forced seven fumbles this past season.That performance made the franchise tag a palatable option.“Obviously, Dee is a player that has done so much for us, in particular last year Christian Okoye Jersey ,” Veach said. “We have a special thing brewing here and I think everyone wants to keep this thing rolling.”The Chiefs also have a decision to make with fellow outside linebacker Justin Houston, who had nine sacks in 12 games last season. He carries a salary cap hit of $21.1 million, a number the Chiefs would like to drive down either by restructuring his deal or potentially releasing him.“I would say that he’s under contract for this year and next year,” Veach said at the NFL’s scouting combine this week. “Again, our plan is to play with him and we look forward to having him on our roster. There’s a lot of dialogue and I think everything is fluid for the next few weeks until we get into the start of the league year. We’ll kind of handle that — the information we get, what’s real, what’s not real — and it’s a good problem to have because he’s a great player.” The Chiefs defensive lineman is entering the final year of his rookie contract and is likely due for an extension."Friend-of-the-site Terez Paylor is reporting that Kansas City Chiefs defensive lineman Chris Jones has not been present at team offseason workouts since April 15, when the offseason program began.The 24-year-old Jones is entering the final year of his rookie contract and should be due for an extension given his 2018 output: a team-leading 15.5 sacks, 29 quarterback hits Marcus Allen Jersey , 40 tackles (35 solo), five passes defensed, two forced fumbles and one interception for a touchdown. An NFL Network report calling Jones one of the Chiefs’ offseason priorities came through back in mid-January. It is worth noting that at the time, the network considered both Tyreek Hill and Dee Ford additional priorities for the Chiefs.Chiefs head coach Andy Reid last spoke about Jones on April 15.“The one neat thing that Chris (Jones) did last year was move around a little bit, which I think will help him, because he can play outside, or he can play inside,” he said of Jones fitting in Steve Spagunuolo’s new 4-3 defense. “I think he is going to be OK there. It was 70 or 75 percent of the time he was asked to do that four-man front. I think he will be OK.”As Paylor notes in his report, Chiefs general manager Brett Veach spoke about Jones teaming with Frank Clark along the defensive line in Clark’s introductory press conference on Friday.The Chiefs wrapped up phase one of the offseason last week. Phase two consists of the next three weeks of the program—on-field workouts may include individual player instruction and drills as well as team practice conducted on a “separates” basis. No live contact or team offense vs. team defense drills are permitted during phase two.Phase three workouts (OTAs) begin May 21. During phase three Larry Johnson Jersey , teams may conduct a total of 10 days of organized team practice activity. No live contact is permitted, but seven-on-seven, nine-on-seven, and 11-on-11 drills are allowed.The entire offseason program is voluntary until June 11, when the Chiefs begin a three-day mandatory minicamp.As it stands, Jones is due to make a $1.19 million base salary in 2019, according to Over the Cap. Over the Cap also estimates the Chiefs currently have $17.86 million in cap room for 2019.Reid is scheduled to speak to media members Saturday ahead of rookie minicamp, but he has historically avoided commenting on missing players by citing the workouts being labeled as voluntary.