Chandler

Jones

The troubled veteran had been away from the team this season while dealing with what can only be described as mental health issues. He was then arrested and booked in Las Vegas early Friday morning, prompting his release. We can only wish our best for Jones moving forward.

His court date was set for December 4th. Jones has been away from the team since the start of the season and was placed on the non-football illness list last week. Jones has made multiple posts on social media that took shots at Raiders owner Mark Davis and head coach Josh McDaniel. It’s unlikely he takes the field for Las Vegas or any other team this year.

Jones made headlines over the weekend by posting disturbing allegations on his social media about him discovering harm being done to a girl he’s fostering. There’s no indication of what is going on with Jones, and the Raiders have publicly stood by him and stated that they welcome him back “if his situation improves.” Until more comes to light, it seems safe to assume that Jones could be away from the team for a while.

Jones is in the midst of a public standoff with his team, though the reason for the rift between the two parties remains unclear. Raiders coach Josh McDaniels hasn’t given a meaningful update on the situation, so we’ll assume Jones is out until further notice.

No real surprises here. Quarterback Aidan O’Connell will serve as the team’s emergency quarterback behind Jimmy Garappolo and Brian Hoyer.

Jones is seemingly at odds with the Las Vegas organization after saying he didn’t want to play for GM Dave Ziegler or head coach Josh McDaniels via a post on Instagram that has since been deleted. The veteran EDGE was not at practice all week and could be out for multiple weeks if he simply doesn’t show up.

It’s been a weird week for Jones, who accused the Raiders staff and front office of locking him out of the gym, going as far as to say he no longer wants to play for DM Dave Ziegler or McDaniels. Jones also said the Raiders sent a crisis response team to his home, who encouraged them to come with him because he was “in danger.” There’s still a lot to unwrap here, but for now, it sounds like Jones is on the verge of missing at least the first game of the season.

Jones missed a few practices in training camp with an undisclosed injury, but all seemed normal with him until earlier this week. That was before he trashed the Raiders via a post on his Instagram account in which he accused the Raiders of locking him out of the team gym. Jones also said he didn’t want to play for GM Dave Ziegler or head coach Josh McDaniels anymore. The post has since been deleted, but it looks like Jones wants out of Las Vegas. It’s possible the two sides can work things out and Jones is back on the field sooner rather than later, but a trade may be the resolution both parties need. McDaniels did not elaborate on the situation on Wednesday after saying Jones would not be at practice.

The extent of Jones’ elbow injury is unclear at this point, but landing on injured reserve ends his season barring a miraculous playoff appearance from the team. He went down with the elbow injury in Week 16 and was quickly ruled out. With a $25.6 million dead cap hit in 2023, the Raiders cannot afford to move on from the 32-year-old EDGE defender in the offseason. He will look to rebound from his 4.5-sack season with the Raiders next year.

Jones collided with teammate Maxx Crosby in the third quarter and seemed to be in a world of pain. He had to be carted and was quickly ruled out, an obviously poor development for his Christmas Eve. Although he’s coming off one of the most absurd defensive plays of the entire year against the Patriots in Week 15, Jones entered Week 16 with just 4.5 sacks in 14 games. The 32-year-old seems to have lost another step after some modest decline in Arizona, but he would still be a huge loss for the Raiders’ defense as they cling to distant playoff hopes.