The Chandler Jones debacle was an undeniable black eye for the Las Vegas Raiders organization; however, former general manager Dave Ziegler signed him despite red flags. One of those ominous signs came from a first-hand account of Jones’ troubled past.
The entire saga surrounding the former Raiders pass rusher is a layered issue. There’s the mental health aspect, which troubled many folks, and rightfully so. You also had others who were dissatisfied with how the team handled it, especially former head coach Josh McDaniels. Still, the Raiders might’ve been able to avoid all of it. Regrettably, the ties between the now-jettisoned duo of McDaniels and Ziegler and former New England Patriots players didn’t help in this case. The warning signs were there, but they insisted on brining in No. 55.
Did Josh McDaniels and Dave Ziegler drop the ball with Chandler Jones?
While Jones isn’t necessarily what brought forth the end of the duo, it didn’t help matters.
Raiders insider Hondo Carpenter of Sports Illustrated shed some light on that event. As it turned out, he had first-hand knowledge of Jones that the Raiders ought to have taken into account. However, as we know now, Jones was brought in, and things didn’t go as planned.
“I got a phone call from a teammate of Chandler Jones with the Arizona Cardinals, who shared with me some very concerning things about Chandler. Some off-field concerns, and forget those—what about the fact that last year he had a lot of sacks, but most of them came in one game?”
The unnamed player was right; Jones’ season prior to joining the Raiders was deceiving. Yes, he accumulated 10.5 sacks, but seven of those came via two contests (five alone were in one game).
Despite bringing it to the attention of the team’s brass, as Carpenter claims, the Raiders pressed on. Clearly, Jones’ ties to the Patriots played a role as well. Looking back, it’s safe to say this was one of the most disastrous free agent signings of the past decade for the Silver and Black. Even more so, when you take it into account, it might’ve been avertible.
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