Arizona Cardinals

Cardinals players believe Chandler Jones can get 20 sacks this season

Published Nov. 15, 2016 2:30 p.m. ET

Brett Pollakoff

Chandler Jones hasn't yet played in a game that counts for the Arizona Cardinals, but his new teammates are already setting expectations sky-high for his first season in the desert.

Jones came over in an offseason trade with the New England Patriots, and based on the way he performed in the first half of 2015, his teammates see no reason why Jones shouldn't reach a sack milestone that's been achieved only 11 times in the last 33 years.

"He has that potential to be a 20-plus sack guy," cornerback Patrick Peterson said, via AZCentral. "He’s in a contract year, too, so I know he’s going to be even that much hungrier.”

“In this division, yeah, he can get 20 sacks,” safety Tyrann Mathieu said. “In this division, they rely on their quarterbacks to make plays – i.e. San Francisco and Seattle. I just figure it like this: If (Dwight) Freeney had eight sacks in a backup role, Chandler should probably get 20 in a starting role.”

Jones was on pace for 19 sacks through nine games last season, before ultimately finishing with 12.5. The Cardinals will likely be thrilled if Jones gets anywhere near that 20-sack mark, considering they ranked just 20th in the league in that category last season.