The Next Steps for Raiders CB Jack Jones

The Las Vegas Raiders are hoping for cornerback Jack Jones to not only pick up where he left off last season, but elevate his game this upcoming season. Defensive Coordinator Patrick Graham elaborated on the team's hopes for the talented defensive back.

Las Vegas Raiders CB Jack Jones from OTAs / Darrell Craig Harris, Sports Illustrated

Of the many challenges Las Vegas Raiders coach Antonio Pierce faced upon his promotion after Josh McDaniels was fired was the fact that he took over at the helm after the trade deadline, which significantly reduced the team’s chances of improving before the final nine games of the season in which Coach Pierce and the Raiders went 5-4.

Pierce and the Raiders were forced to progress through the second half of the season with one of the most flawed rosters in the National Football League. 

However, as fate would have it, a few weeks after Pierce was promoted, a talented former player from his days coaching on the high school and collegiate level had just been released by the New England Patriots at a position of need for the Raiders. Pierce coached cornerback Jack Jones in high school and then again when Jones attended Arizona State while Pierce was there. 

Years later, Pierce, the newly promoted interim head coach of the Raiders, needed a cornerback after starting cornerback Amik Robertson missed time with a concussion. Pierce brought in Jones, and the rest was history. Jones spent the rest of the season repaying Pierce and the Raiders for the opportunity with excellent play on the field combined with a confidence and swagger that perfectly fit the Raiders' defense. 

Jones enters his second season with the team, this time with a full training camp and offseason with the team under his belt. Raiders defensive coordinator Patrick Graham said while he understands the excitement surrounding the defense, he expects daily improvement from Jones and the rest of the defense.

“[I expect the] same thing that Maxx [Crosby] preaches every day, same thing AP [Coach Antonio Pierce] is preaching – one percent each day,” Graham recently said at training camp. “If you look too far ahead – I get it, the excitement of training camp, the excitement of the season. It [was] July 5th, and people are sending me text messages about when the season starts. I said, 'Can I enjoy my vacation first?’ And plus, there's the internet. 

“I get why everybody's excited, but we got to get better every day. That's where it starts. So, whether it's Jack, whether it's Christian [Wilkins], whether it's Maxx [Crosby], whether it's me. I made a mistake on the script today; I'm pissed about that right now, if you can tell in my tone, because I tell these guys to be on it, and I messed it up. But one percent every day, that's what we're trying to do. That's what we're trying to do."

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