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The Kansas City Chiefs have signed free agent running back Thomas Jones, who led the New York Jets to the AFC championship game last season and was the NFL’s third-leading rusher.

While the Chiefs confirmed the deal Tuesday, they declined to disclose the terms. ESPN insider Adam Schefter, however, reports the two sides agreed on a two-year deal worth $5 million. Per Schefter, the contract calls for Jones to be paid $3 million this year and $2 million next year with another $500,000 in incentives.

The 31-year-old is expected to supplement third-year running back Jamaal Charles, who was Kansas City’s MVP last season with 1,120 rushing yards and seven touchdowns.

Jones is coming off a season in which he set career highs by rushing for 1,402 yards and 14 touchdowns while helping the Jets reach the AFC Championship Game against Indianapolis.

He was also a popular presence in the locker room, twice being voted the team's most inspirational player by his teammates.

Jones had a career-high 331 carries in the regular season and appeared to wear down a bit down the stretch as rookie Shonn Greene got the majority of carries. Still, with the game on the line against San Diego and the Jets facing fourth-and-1 late, coach Rex Ryan put the ball in Jones' hands to make a first down that clinched a trip to Indianapolis.

Jones was drafted seventh overall in 2000 by the Arizona Cardinals. He was traded to Tampa Bay in 2003, went to Chicago in 2004 as a free agent and was traded to the Jets in 2007.

The real question heading into the 2010 season now becomes how carries and workload are divided between Charles and Jones.

Remember: Charles became one of the most productive backs in NFL history last season. He had 190 carries on the season; no previous back reached 1,100-plus yards with that many or fewer carries.

Before Charles, the back with the fewest carries to reach 1,100 yards was Leroy Kelly in 1966. Kelly had 1,141 yards on 209 carries.

Better still, Charles did the vast majority of his damage after taking over as the starter in November, following Larry Johnson's release. In fact, Tennessee's Chris Johnson was the only running back with more Fantasy production over the final eight weeks of the season than Charles.

But team officials questioned whether Charles could hold up to 20-plus touches on a week-in, week-out basis for 16 games. At various points towards the end of 2009, Charles was returning kicks while logging over 20-25 offensive touches per contest. His workload was extensive.

At the NFL Scouting Combine last month, head coach Todd Haley said it was imperative Kansas City get Charles some help because he is “200 pounds soaking wet.”

So while Jones' presence improves Charles' chances of making it through all 16 games, it's only because the diminutive speedster is no longer likely to be asked to handle those 20-plus touches.

According to ESPN.com's Bill Williamson, Charles should remain the Chiefs’ primary back. But Jones will get plenty of carries and will likely be the Chiefs’ short-yardage back. From a Fantasy perspective, NFL.com's Michael Fabiano believes those lost carries in the red zone will hurt Charles’ draft value the most.

According to Kansas City Star staffer Kent Babb, a 65-35 split for Charles seems reasonable enough in predicting the likely overall percentage of touches this fall.

Given all that, I still think Charles should be viewed as a viable front-line Fantasy back.

What remains to be seen, however, is whether he should still be viewed as a true Fantasy RB1 or if Jones can push for enough work to knock his new teammate out of that elite tier.

Whatever the case, Williamson points out the tandem should give new offensive coordinator Charlie Weis plenty to work with. The Charles-Jones rushing duo should also help quarterback Matt Cassel.

With the run setting up the pass, Cassel won’t have to do it alone.

So the best-case scenario has Jones doing just enough keep Charles in the upright and locked position throughout the year, offer Weis more options and help take some pressure off Cassel and the passing attack.

The worst case?

Jones continues to defy his aging legs, continues to run hard and effectively and makes it difficult for the Chiefs to keep him off the field, muddying the waters for Fantasy owners and almost certainly diminishing the value of Charles.

Yet another situation Fantasy owners will need to keep an eye on as the season draws near.