Jack Jones continues to find his footing with Raiders
HENDERSON, Nev. -- The Las Vegas Raiders, seemingly since their inception, have been blessed with playmaking, ball-hawking, Pro Bowl-if-not-All Pro-level cornerbacks.
From Willie Brown and Kent McCloughan to Lester Hayes and Mike Haynes. From Terry McDaniel to Charles Woodson and Nnamdi Asomugha to...Jack Jones?
Let's pump the brakes a tad on anointing Jones to Raiders royalty. After all, hejoined the roster midseason last year after a rocky start to his NFL career with theNew England Patriots. But when it comes to personality and potential playmaking ability, Jones has entered the chat as one of the most important players on the Raiders current defense. In seven games, Jones had 25 tackles and two interceptions returned for touchdowns. That's a good thing for a unit expected to make a leap forward this coming fall.
"I believe I'm a premier corner already myself," Jones said during OTAs. "I'm not really worried about what y'all say, respectfully... I just go out there and play ball. My goal this year is to be the No. 1 defense and make the playoffs."
These are big goals for a guy who has started five of 25 career games after being a fourth-round draft pick of the Patriots in 2022 and being waived last November, let alone for a Raiders team that has qualified for the postseason twice since 2003, going 0-2 in January.
But while Jones is expected to bring more than a certain swagger, the coaches also hope he will cut down on the mental miscues and eliminate the oft one-step-forward, one-step-back results.
Like the time in the season finale against the Denver Broncos when Jones broke up a pass in the end zone on one play and then "didn't move" on the next snap, according to Raiders assistant head coach Marvin Lewis.
"We want to have some consistency of things, and we're trying to iron Jackie out a little bit, all the time," Lewis said with a laugh. "He's a very talented player, and I've had the pleasure, as I told him again, 'Jack, it's been five years now. Let's move on, let's get this moved to Step B. We're still on Step A.'"
Lewis coached Jones in college at Arizona State.
"But yes, he's a very talented young man," Lewis continued. "He has a knack for making football plays, and he just has that about him. And I think it's just still in the process of learning to be a pro, day in and day out, and I think that's important.
"But his teammates know what they're going to get out there on the field, and we've just got to make sure we keep all those things positive all the time."
Jones, who turned 26 late in the season, was claimed by the Raiders on Nov. 14, a day after being waived by the Patriots.New England cut ties, in part, because of Jones' potential being unrealized and an off-the-field incident that included an arrest on weapons charges at Logan Airport in Boston last summer.
He found a familiar and friendly face not only with Lewis but more famously with Raiders then-interim coach Antonio Pierce, who gambled on Jones. Pierce had coached him not only at Arizona State but also in high school at prep powerhouse Long Beach Polytechnic.
"I've known Jack since he was 13, man, and he just keeps rising and there's still more there," said Pierce, who had the interim tag removed by Raiders owner Mark Davis in January. "Gaining some more weight, getting the little sucker in the weight room, get him bigger. But what he brought to this team when he got here was a swag, the confidence, that go-getter mentality to go make plays, anticipating, film study."
Jones reinvigorated the Raiders cornerback room with his vibe from the moment he landed in Las Vegas. On the field, he had two highlight reel pick-sixes in consecutive games.
He seemingly leaped out of nowhere to reach behind himself to haul in an Easton Stick pass mid-flight to return the interception 16 yards in the Raiders' 63-21 beatdown of the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 15.
Then Jones famously stared down Patrick Mahomes while returning his 33-yard score in the Raiders' 20-14 Christmas Day upset at the Kansas City Chiefs, their final loss before claiming the Lombardi Trophy in February ... in the Raiders' Allegiant Stadium.
Yes, Jones was feeling himself that day. No, he's not letting that carry over. At least not publicly.
"I wouldn't call it bragging rights," he said. "They won the Super Bowl, and we were at home watching... but we was the last team to beat them. But I mean, me personally, I think it was just last year, like, that's nothing.
"We could get swept this year. We could go out there and sweep them. We've just got to go out there, watch film and go out there and execute."
Jones, one of the most vocal players on the field during the offseason program, worked at one cornerback spot while veteran Brandon Facyson and second-year DB Jakorian Bennett were competing on the other side during OTAs and minicamp, with Nate Hobbs as the nickel corner.
Hobbs and Jones have become fast friends in more than one way.
"You can just tell he goes against the grain a little bit," Hobbs said of Jones. "He's just a dog. You can't ever count him out.
"He'll go toe to toe with anybody. He has that type of mentality."
One, perhaps, not seen since the glory days of the position with the Raiders.
One that, if warranted, will see the laurels come soon enough. So long as Jones keeps his focus and does not run afoul of the trust put in him by Pierce and Lewis.
"There's repercussions, let's get that clear, there's repercussions," Jones said with a smile. "But it took a little while, I mean those are guys I've been with for a couple years now, so they got to get a good feel for me, I got to get a good feel for them, and they know my intent is good. So, as long as my intent stays good, then I don't think we'll have a problem."
