Source: Veteran WR Jones to reunite with Lions

Free agent wide receiver Marvin Jones Jr. is expected to sign a one-year, $3 million contract that can be worth up to $5 million with the Detroit Lions, a source told ESPN’s Adam Schefter on Wednesday.

Jones, 33, caught 119 passes for 1,361 yards and seven touchdowns the past two seasons with the Jacksonville Jaguars. He led the team in receptions (73), receiving yards (832) and receiving touchdowns (four) in 2021.

He spent the previous four seasons (2016-20) with the Lions and posted his only 1,000-yard season in 2017, when he caught 61 passes for 1,101 yards and led the NFL with 18.0 yards per catch.

He will be counted on to help replace DJ Chark, who left the Lions in free agency to sign a one-year contract with the Carolina Panthers.

After Jacksonville signed receivers Christian Kirk and Zay Jones and tight end Evan Engram last March, Jones dropped to the team’s fourth option. But quarterback Trevor Lawrence went his way for one of the most important plays of the season: a 10-yard touchdown pass with 14 seconds to play against the Baltimore Ravens. The Jaguars won the game 28-27 on a 2-point conversion.

The Cincinnati Bengals drafted Jones in the fifth round of the 2012 NFL draft, and he spent four seasons with the franchise.

He has 542 catches for 7,386 yards and 58 touchdowns in his career.

ESPN’s Michael DiRocco contributed to this report.

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