Ain’t no way Jack Jones did this. The Las Vegas Raiders cornerback who wore out his welcome with Bill Belichick by missing a hotel curfew is one of the few Patriots castoffs who’ve actually worked out (at least so far) in Sin City.
Jones played the role of the Grinch stealing Christmas on Monday against the seemingly indefatigable Chiefs. On Kansas City’s home turf at Arrowhead Stadium, Jones straight-up taunted Patrick Mahomes when he jumped his route for a pick-six, which marked the Raiders’ second defensive TD in about seven seconds:
But the savage move to end all savage moves happened at the end. I’m looking for a better angle in real time, but you can clearly see Jones offer up the ball to a child Chiefs fan as a Christmas gift, only to rip it away from his grasp.
And here’s a closer look at Jones’ stare-down at Mahomes, along with his antithesis-of-Santa-and-the-holiday-spirit gesture:
That is a whole other level of petty AFC West rivalry behavior. I’m here for it — for the most part. It really is funny.
I feel bad for the kid to some degree. Jones has a history of legal issues, and clearly Belichick was over his bullsh*t. On the other hand, as mentioned on the CBS telecast, interim Vegas coach Antonio Pierce has known Jones since he was a kid. He must’ve felt comfortable enough to take a chance on him. It’s paid off so far, as Jones had an incredible pick-six the previous week when the Raiders won 63-21 and triggered the firings of Chargers coach Brandon Staley and GM Tom Telesco.
How must disgraced, axed ex-Las Vegas coach Josh McDaniels feel right about now? As if dunking on McDaniels with victory cigars wasn’t enough, Jones is the one carryover from New England who would’ve actually panned out for him. Eh, he probably doesn’t care. Dude is making millions upon millions for years after swindling Mark Davis into thinking he could build a Patriots West out of the Raiders organization.
Congrats to Jack Jones for seemingly revitalizing a career that was already in jeopardy once Belichick waived him after barely a season of NFL service. Let’s see if he can become a legit cornerstone for Las Vegas in the coming years. One thing’s for sure: Pierce is building a hell of a case to keep the gig as Raiders head coach, regardless of how this duel with the Chiefs finishes up.
