Tag: Jack Jones

Ballers for Raiders Preseason Week 2 vs Cowboys

Ballers for Raiders Preseason Week 2 vs Cowboys

There wasn’t much to cheer about in the Raiders second preseason matchup of 2024. But there were some bright spots here and there. And since these games don’t count, it’s easier to celebrate the small victories.

Ballers

WR Tre Tucker

This game was the Tre Tucker show. He had another long ball in this game, just as he did in the preseason opener. This one went for 48 yards and set up the Raiders’ first score. He might have had one on the first drive of the game had Minshew seen him break open. He would finish the game with three catches for 66 yards.

Tucker also did work in the return game, running a punt back 42 yards to put the Raiders at the Dallas 28 and setting up their second score of the game.

WR DJ Turner

The man who was to be Tucker’s primary competition at slot receiver has the Raiders thinking of ways to get both players on the field.

The Raiders had one touchdown drive in the game. It was their lone third down drive. And it was all Turner. He caught a short dump pass and turned it into 12 yards to put the Raiders in scoring range. Then on fourth and two, he made the catch for a seven-yard gain. A few plays later, on third and five, Turner made an outstanding grab, reaching around the outstretched arm of a defender to pull it in and put the Raiders in first and goal at the eight.

CB Jack Jones

Jones pass breakups ended the Cowboys’ first two drives. He also tied for the team lead with six tackles.

DE Elerson Smith

Smith blew up a run for a loss to end the Cowboys’ first possession of the third quarter. Then on the Cowboys’ final drive, he forced a holding penalty and on the next play got a pressure leading to an incompletion.

Continue to the Busters…

Ballers from Raiders preseason Week 1 vs Vikings

The positive standout performances from the Raiders first preseason game.

Welcome to year 17 of Ballers & Busters. The first ever B&B came out in preseason of 2008. So, let’s get it going for 2024, shall we?

There was a lot to like about what we saw from the Raiders first preseason action of 2024. They went on four scoring drives in the first half and held the Vikings to one to take a 20-7 halftime lead.

Things went awry in the second half, but, hey, preseason.

That being said, since the preseason tends to focus a lot on individual performances, let’s get to it.

Keep in mind, there are no Top Ballers or Top Busters for preseason. I pretty much just listed them in order of appearance.

S Tre’von Moehrig

After giving up a 19-yard catch on the second play, Moehrig settled in. He made two run stops on that same drive and had tight coverage for an incompletion on third and two from the four-yard line. The second Vikings drive, Moehrig made what could’ve been a touchdown saving tackle, stopping a run at 16 yards. He finished with a team-leading six tackles, all solo.

CB Jakorian Bennett

With the Vikings in 4th and two from the four, they went for it and Bennett was there to break up the attempt in the end zone to hold the Vikings scoreless on their opening drive and give the Raiders the ball back.

WR Jakobi Meyers

On third and three on the first drive, Meyers got open deep and made a leaping 24-yard grab. The next play he made the catch on a zero route in the left flat, stepped away from a tackler and ran for eight yards. Two plays later, in third and three, Aidan O’Connell looked for him again and he made a 13-yard catch to put the Raiders in Minnesota territory. One play later, they were in field goal range.

CB Jack Jones

The Raiders took a 3-0 lead into the second quarter. In third and eight, the Raiders blitzed, forcing JJ McCarthy to make a quick decision. He thought he had a man open, but Jack Jones undercut the route and picked off the pass, giving the Raiders the ball back. Jones then took his ball and went home (the sideline).

WR Tre Tucker

The offense came in after the turnover, this time with Gardner Minshew at QB. The second play saw Tucker make an adjustment on a pass slightly behind him on a cross, to make the catch for 29 yards. The next drive, he made an even more impressive adjustment. Going deep, he was turned inside, but the pass was headed to his outside shoulder, so he turned away from the pass, relocated it in the air and then laid out to make the catch for 44 yards. The Raiders would score touchdowns on both drives. The second one, Tucker laid a key block for Zamir White to run it in. He added a nice punt return at the end of the half as well.

QB Gardner Minshew

All three Minshew possessions, the Raiders scored. The first two for touchdowns. The first drive featured a 29-yard pass to Tre Tucker and a scramble for seven yards on third and three. The touchdown was on a perfect strike to DJ Turner at the right pylon. The second TD drive he aire out for a 44-yard connection with Tucker and found Cole Fotheringham for 11 yards on third and six. He finished 6/12 for 117 yards and one TD with a passer rating of 112.2.

LB Amari Burney

Burney came to play. The 2023 sixth round pick clearly set out to let everyone know he was still here. His biggest play was late in the third quarter, when he ended a drive by coming up to make a stop at the line for no gain on third and one. That was his third run stuff of the day. The first went for a loss and the other for one yard. His four tackles in the game were tied for second on the team. He even had a QB hit in the game.

P AJ Cole

In the second half, when nothing was working for the Raiders on offense, Cole would come in an remind them that at least he can tilt the field. He had two punts of 60 yards – one that was fair caught at the 14 –, one for 56 yards that went out of bounds at the five, and one that went 43 yards that was fair caught at the 11. Weapon.

Honorable Mention

DE Malcolm Koonce – Had a run stop for no gain and a pressure leading to an incompletion on the first drive.

QB Aidan O’Connell – Went 7/9 for 76 yards on the opening drive, twice converting on third down.

LB Robert Spillane – Put on the pressure that rushed McCarthy into his throw that Jack Jones picked off.

WR DJ Turner – Beat his man and streaked toward the end zone to score the Raiders first touchdown of the day from 20 yards out.

DT TJ Franklin – Blocked a field goal attempt in the second quarter.

S Phalen Sanford – Caught the ball off the Franklin blocked field goal and returned it 42 yards to the Minnesota 40-yard-line.

K Daniel Carlson – Lined up for a 56-yard field goal off the blocked field goal and return and nailed it to give the Raiders a 20-7 lead. Carlson hit two other chipshot field goals in the game.

Continue to the Busters…

Raiders winners and losers in 24-23 preseason defeat vs. Vikings

The Raiders preseason kicked off on Saturday with a loss to the Vikings. Who stood out the most for Las Vegas?

After a successful training camp, the Raiders finally got to hit someone besides their teammates on Saturday during their preseason debut against the Vikings. Surprisingly, the Raiders offense started faster than a Las Vegas defense expected to carry the club in 2024.

Quarterbacks Aidan O’Connell and Gardner Minshew both saw first-half action, and the offense didn’t punt until after halftime. The defense played well for the most part but allowed the Vikings to convert too many big plays.

Here are the winners and losers for the week after our first look at the 2024 Las Vegas Raiders.

Winner: CB Jakorian Bennett

Cornerback Jakorian Bennett took the field as a starter after earning that right in training camp. The Raiders are looking for someone to take charge opposite entrenched cornerback Jack Jones, and Bennett made a big play to save the Raiders’ starting defense on the Vikings’ initial drive.

Minnesota drove to the Las Vegas 4-yard line, even as starters, including defensive end Maxx Crosby, were in the game. On 4th-and-2, Bennett showed impressive ball skills on a pass breakup in the end zone. There’s a lot of preseason left, but Bennett made further strides toward remaining a Raiders starter at cornerback.

Winner: CB Jack Jones

As the Raiders defense dominated in training camp, Jones was perhaps the most impressive player for defensive coordinator Patrick Graham. Jones showed he’s ready to make plays against quarterbacks besides his own with a skillful interception early in the third quarter.

 

Jones played exceptionally well for Las Vegas last season. But his sample size as a professional is relatively small, and the Raiders defense needs him to perform at a high level this year. So far, so good.

Winner: WR DJ Turner

Though coach Antonio Pierce chose to play his starters in Minnesota, wide receiver Davante Adams was with his family to welcome his baby boy to the world. That left extra opportunity for the Raiders’ wide receiver room.

Wide receiver DJ Turner took advantage, hauling in a 20-yard touchdown from QB Gardner Minshew in the second quarter.

Turner had a strong camp and he backed it up at his first opportunity. The depth chart is far from set at wideout after Adams, WR Jakobi Meyers, and WR Tre Tucker; Turner continued his path toward earning a role for offensive coordinator Luke Getsy this season.

Winner: WR Tre Tucker

Though Tucker is slated to be one of Las Vegas’ top weapons this season, the speedster has had issues dropping the football. He needs to prove he can handle a large role, especially with Turner performing well.

His 44-yard grab on a toss from Minshew put his skills on full display and helped quiet any doubts he’s up to the task. It would be nice to see Tucker catch the ball with his hands more than with his body, but he got the job done in preseason Week 1.

Winner: OC Luke Getsy

Getsy was fired last season as the offensive coordinator for the Bears, and his offense struggled during Raiders training camp. For a Las Vegas team trying to turn a corner and make the playoffs, Getsy must show he’s capable of directing this Raiders offense.

With O’Connell at quarterback to start the game, the offense went on a long, impressive field-goal drive after Bennett’s pass breakup in the end zone. For Getsy and everyone involved with the offense, it was likely a breath of fresh air and proof that they’ve made progress with Getsy’s new scheme. The Raiders offense enjoyed success the entire first half and didn’t have to punt until backup Anthony Brown Jr. entered the game.

Winner: Offensive line

The Raiders were without two starters on the offensive line, but their group still blocked well enough for the offense to find much-needed success. Both Thayer Munford Jr. and rookie DJ Glaze played well at offensive tackle. That’s a big boost for a Raiders team that needs at least one of those young players to hold down the right tackle spot in 2024.

Winner: QB Gardner Minshew

Minshew didn’t start, but he entered the game in the second quarter as Pierce planned. He led four drives compared to just one drive for O’Connell, however, and finished with 117 yards on 6-for-12 passing and a touchdown throw. He also scrambled for a first down.

The Raiders quarterback competition is far from over, but Minshew made the most of his opportunity and lopsided drive count compared to O’Connell.

Loser: QB Aidan O’Connell

In a kinder, gentler world, O’Connell would join Minshew on the winner list. He looked great to start the game despite starting his first drive of 2024 on the Raiders’ 4-yard line.

But Minshew had a touchdown throw and multiple splash plays. O’Connell had a chance to throw a touchdown of his own in his only drive of the game, but he was sacked on a 3rd-and-goal play as backup lineman Andrus Peat was beaten on the edge.

The Raiders QB competition is just heating up though. O’Connell appears on my loser list today, but he could very well win the job as Raiders starting QB by preseason’s end.

Loser: WR Kristian Wilkerson

Raiders wide receivers behind Tucker and Turner on the depth chart had a golden opportunity on Saturday with Adams’ absence. None of them took advantage. But WR Kristian Wilkerson got the start, and he likely wants a do-over on his one catch of the day, a WR screen that lost one yard.

Watching live, it appeared that Wilkerson made one move too many rather than cutting upfield and getting available yardage. Making matters worse, the Raiders only needed a few yards to gain a first down.

Loser: S Jaydon Grant

Safety Jaydon Grant missed a tackle on open space on a 48-yard touchdown run by the Vikings in the second quarter. Linebacker Luke Masterson missed his assignment on the play, but Grant was the last line of defense and he missed badly on his tackle attempt.

Loser: CB MJ Devonshire

Rookie cornerback MJ Devonshire had a rough first go as an NFL defensive back. He let a Vikings receiver go right past him for a 45-yard score in the third quarter. In his defense, he didn’t get any help over the top from safety Chris Smith II.

Loser: S Trey Taylor/big play defense

The Raiders allowed another big play later in the third quarter on a blown coverage in the secondary. It appears that S Trey Taylor was the No. 1 culprit on this one, but I’ve handed the entire Raiders defense part of this entry on the loser list for allowing too many big plays and 452 yards overall.

It’s just one game, but this week told us a lot about this season’s Raiders squad. The defense looks strong but has some issues to clean up, and the offense looks much better when Maxx Crosby isn’t terrorizing them. But as we know, the NFL is a week-to-week business. They’ll have to prove themselves again against the Cowboys next weekend in Las Vegas.

Raiders preseason Week 1 vs Vikings: What to watch for

What to watch for in Raiders preseason opener in Minnesota

It’s game day. For the first time in over seven months, the Raiders take the field for a game. This first outing is their preseason opener in Minnesota.

The game will air on NFL Network at 1pm Pacific (3pm local, 4pm ET). You can see all the details of how to watch here.

For that, here are a few things to watch for.

Quarterback competition

This is the number one reason to tune in by a wide margin. Gardner Minshew and Aidan O’Connell will each get a quarter of play. Antonio Pierce has not revealed who will take the field first, but the order will be flipped next week when the face the Cowboys in Las Vegas.

What does matter here is we could get to see one QB against Vikings starters and the other against backups and fringe players. As in most cases the expected starters play very little in the first preseason matchup, if at all.

This competition has been raging on through training camp and to anyone watching, Minshew has a clear lead between the two, if only a slight one. It’s not decisive, which is why O’Connell still has a chance to come charging back in the competition with his play in preseason and the remaining practices before the season begins.

Rookie standouts

Raiders fans are no doubt excited to get to see 13th overall pick Brock Bowers take the field for the first time. There are obviously high hopes for the decorated tight end out of Georgia and Napa California native. 

The rest of the class has some guys hoping to continue their fine play from the camp in the preseason. Including Round three tackle DJ Glaze, Round four cornerback Decamerion Richardson, Round five linebacker Tommy Eichenberg, Round six running back Dylan Laube, round seven CB MJ Devonshire, and undrafted receiver Ramel Keyton.

Kick returns

This year the kick returner job is far more exciting due to the new kickoff rules.For that reason, it will be very interesting to see how the Raiders handle it and specifically *who* handles it. The previously mentioned Dylan Laube figures to find a role there, but others have gotten work there as well, including Ameer Abdullah and even cornerback Jack Jones.

As far as how Daniel Carlson changes his kicking strategy, I would be surprised if he reveals much about that in this game. Best to keep it status quo before the games count. Gotta keep Jim Harbaugh and the Chargers guessing until the season opener.

Next men up

Often times the entrenched starters won’t play in the preseason opener. But some will not play for other reasons. Left tackle Kolton Miller is on the PUP list, as is rookie left guard Jackson Powers-Johnson. Davante Adams was absent the last week of camp because he was home in Las Vegas awaiting the birth of his child.

Stepping up for those three will be three veterans: Andrus Peat (LT), Cody Whitehair (LG), and Kristian Wilkerson (WR).

Other game coverage:

How to watch Raiders preseason Week 2 vs Vikings

5 Raiders battles to watch on offense in preseason opener in Minnesota

5 Raiders battles to watch on offense in preseason opener in Minnesota

9 players who opened some eyes at Raiders camp

Raiders preseason opener will be ‘very telling’ in QB competition

Breaking down Raiders first unofficial depth chart of preseason

Winners from Raiders training camp scrimmage

Raiders training camp Day 5 report: Offense fails to step up first day in pads

It may have been a change of play style for the Raiders camp, but who controlled things remained the same. The defense continued to dominate. I asked Antonio Pierce prior to practice who he expects will benefit the most from pads going on, and he …

It may have been a change of play style for the Raiders camp, but who controlled things remained the same. The defense continued to dominate.

I asked Antonio Pierce prior to practice who he expects will benefit the most from pads going on, and he said the offense without question. And he brought in a special guest last night to try and get them pumped up for it.

“If I had to predict today, I think the offensive line is going to get after it,” said Pierce. “Richie Incognito talked to the team last night. It was pretty intense. Whatever you think he said, he said.”

The offensive line certainly came out with intensity. In the early going, Andrus Peat pancake blocked Tyree Wilson to the turf. And midway through practice Thayer Munford injured his hand on a play, only to get it wrapped up and return to the field a bit later.

As far as how the rest of the offense performed, it was…not great.

The talk the offense had been doing prior to today was that of ‘just wait until pads go on.’ Well pads were on and thus far they have not backed up their words.

No question the Raiders have a very good defense. It shows for sure. But the issues with the offense go well beyond the quality of defense they’re facing.

Mostly it continues to be the quarterback play that plagues the offensive play for the Raiders in camp. The passes are just not getting to the receivers consistently.

I could count on one hand how many solid completions there were on the day. O’Connell had one good connection on a deep corner route to Jakobi Meyers.

Other than that it was a whole lotta bad for the offense.

The defense was flying around, swarming, and jawing all day long.

The closest Davante Adams came to making a play was a pass that looked like it might get there, but he had his jersey tugged on, drawing a pass interference call. And Tre Tucker simply could not get open.

Play after play, Tucker had a defender on his hip. Sometimes it was Jakorian Bennett, sometimes it was Nate Hobbs, and once it was Jack Jones. But it didn’t matter. The result was the same. Incomplete.

It wasn’t until the final drive of the day that the offense got anything going at all. It was Gardner Minshew running the offense. Kristian Fulton had a leaping grab over the middle, then DJ Turner caught one on a cross, and finally Minshew found Alex Bachman on an out to put the team at the 18 for a field goal. It was a relative positive in a day without much before that.

For the defense’s part, they were fired up and stopping everything, including the ground game. Adam Butler had a couple stops and he was sure to let the offense know on each of them, barking at them and running into the backfield to taunt them. Christian Wilkins did some dancing and talking as well.

The one thing you didn’t see much of were turnovers. There were two fumbled handoffs, one between O’Connell and Zamir White and the other between Anthony Brown and Brittain Brown. Jack Jones nearly had a pick on an ugly O’Connell pass after he was basically sacked by Maxx Crosby.

Jack Jones showing he is Jack of all trades in Raiders camp

Jack Jones showing he is Jack of all trades in Raiders camp

Jack Jones is enjoying life these days. He’s playing on a team that loves him, for a coach that appreciates him, and in a training camp in his hometown.

No one is more visibly hyped in camp than Jones. He’s dancing during drills, celebrating every win on every play, and frustrated with every catch he allows. And even when you’d think he’d be able to take a breather, he’s asking for more to do.

Jones is a starting cornerback on this team. The only set starting outside corner. And yet when special teams drills start, he’s right there looking to take part.

On punts, he’s fielding and returning them. And on kickoffs — with the neew rules in place — he’s actually trying his hand (or foot, as it were) to see if he can do that as well.

“I’m an athlete,” Jones said of his special teams work. “In my head I can do everything, any position. I just go out there and just do it. And it falls how it falls.”

The fans in attendance eat up Jones’s emotion and enthusiasm.

The Long Beach native and star at high school football powerhouse Long Beach Poly undoubtedly has a lot of Raiders fans who have been fans of his long before he donned Silver & Black.

He can feel the love from those fans. He feeds on it and gives that love back throughout practice. Several times after he returned a punt, he took a detour on his way back to his spot to swing by the stands and hype up the crowd, even slapping hands on his way by.

His head coach Antonio Pierce has also long been a fan. This is Pierce’s third stint as Jones’s coach. He was his head coach at Long Beach Poly and his defensive coordinator at Arizona State.

Pierce and Jones clearly have a special bond. They understand each other. Most importantly, Pierce understands Jones. As a former player turned head coach, Pierce lets his players be themselves because he says it empowers them. The results late last season after Pierce took over and Jones was added to the team, show that approach works. And it has Jones enthusiastically wanting to contribute everywhere he possibly can.

That doesn’t mean he will be doing anything other than his lockdown cornerback duties come the season, but, hey, you never know, right?

Raiders camp Day 3: Red zone drills see early QB flashes before defense shut it down

Raiders camp Day 3: Red zone drills see early QB flashes before defense shut it down

Three days are now in the books for the Raiders. And for the quarterbacks there hasn’t been a whole lot to celebrate.

A rough day two on Thurday seemed to rebound with some nice looking passes to begin Friday’s practice. But it wouldn’t last.

The first team sessions saw Aidan O’Connell throw a couple of nice looking passes to Jakobi Meyers. Though, the first may not have actually gotten off in an actual game, the pass itself was perfectly placed to Meyers in the back of the end zone with Meyers climbing the ladder to get it.

The very next play, O’Connell found Meyers again on a crossing pattern for another score. A bit later, in one-on-ones, O’Connell found Meyers a couple more times, with Meyers getting the better of Jack Jones on both passes.

After leading the team with eight touchdown catches last season, Meyers has become a serious red zone threat for the Raiders.

“That’s probably the most important,” Meyers said of the red zone. “That’s the toughest part of the field. Less space, less time. If we can capitalize in the red zone, we’ll be a much better team.”

He also found Brock Bowers, who leapt over a defender to make the catch over the middle.

Then Gardner Minshew came in and twice found Harrison Bryant for touchdowns.

It was a welcome sight to see the offense have some success against this offense. I say was, because that’s where it ended. From there on out, it was back to being all defense.

Jack Jones would knock down consecutive passes for Jakobi Meyers and Davante Adams. The one to Adams looked like it might be a touchdown, but Jones punched it out. Then a few plays later, Maxx Crosby got pressure on the right side, causing O’Connell to throw up a duck that Jones got under for the interception.

Isaiah Pola Mao got into the act too, streaking over to the left sideline to pick off O’Connell. And Jones batted down another pass from O’Connell to Adams.

“That’s one thing that PG [Patrick Graham] has been stressing to us that we got to improve our red zone defense this year,” said safety Marcus Epps. “He’s been putting a lot of attention and energy into it and we’ve been doing the same. We understand that’s an area we need to improve, so it’s something we’ve made a point of emphasis.”

Practice ended on consecutive plays from inside the five that saw the defensive line snuff out the offense, one a run stop and the other Christian Wilkins knifing into the backfield to make the sack.

I suppose at least even if it fell apart, that there was some early success. Maybe something to build upon in the hopes that at some point we can say the offense got the better of the defense overall. That has yet to happen and it only figures to get more difficult once pads go on.

Nate Hobbs, Jack Jones relationship perfect example of chemistry of new Raiders defense

No relationship more perfectly encapsulates the chemistry of new Raiders defense than that of Nate Hobbs and Jack Jones

The first day of Raiders minicamp they were playing a lot of old school music over the systems. And at one point, they played Johnny Kemp’s classic banger “Just got paid” and cornerbacks Jack Jones and Nate Hobbs started doing a synchronized dance to it. Not unlike the dance from the music video itself.

It was pretty hilarious and the spontaneous dance was a perfect display of the bond of friendship these two players have. Not to mention the kind of energy this Raiders defense has had since midway through last season.

It’s no coincidence that energy arrived right around the time Jack Jones joined the team. That isn’t to say it was Jack Jones who is the reason for it. He’s not. Mainly it was the ousting of Josh McDaniels and the promotion of Antonio Pierce to interim head coach.

But one of first moves Pierce made as head coach was to sign Jones — who Pierce had coached in high school and college — who was waived by the Patriots.

Jones didn’t fit in with “the Patriot Way.” So, it was a good thing the Raiders had just gutted their team of that mindset.

When he arrived, he fit right in with his new teammates. Particularly with Hobbs.

“I feel like we have a lot of things in common,” Hobbs said of Jones. “I think he’s the guy – you can just tell he goes against the grain a little bit 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. I feel like outside of football, we have kind of the same mentality. We’re both unpredictable, just never know what they’re going to do, but have a cool side to him. He’s just my dog, for real and a thorough dude, so I mess with him.”

Their lockers are next to each other at the stadium and following the season finale last seaon, they were both very vocal about wanting Pierce back as head coach. Echoing the sentiment shares by their teammates that Pierce allows them to be themselves.

Other players on the defense felt their best selves come out under Pierce including defensive linemen Malcolm Koonce, Maxx Crosby, and Adam Butler.

Crosby had arrived as a player long before that, but Butler and Koonce broke out in a big way. Koonce had eight sacks in nine games and Butler had sacks in each of the final three games and was made a priority to re-sign this offseason.

Crosby talked about the chemistry he and Butler had early on last offseason, but it really showed up on the field down the stretch last season.

Relationships like Crosby and Butler, Hobbs and Jones remain intact from last season and are looking to continue the momentum that had them finish the season as one of the league’s best defenses.

Jakorian Bennett picks off Aidan O’Connell to open Raiders minicamp

Jakorian Bennett opens Raiders minicamp with a statement interception

The next phase of the Raiders offseason began today with the start of their three-day mandatory minicamp. These practices are designed to mimic the start of training camp in order to give the players a taste of what to expect when they return in five weeks to get ready for the season.

For that reason, these practices are the most important thus far this offseason.

One player who has been making a case to be a starter this season is second-year cornerback Jakorian Bennett. He’s been lining up with the ones all offseason and today, he showed everyone why.

One a play late in practice, he broke the ice with the first takeaway for the Raiders defense. Aidan O’Connell rolled left and threw it short where Bennett stepped in front of it and hauled it in.

O’Connell had been having a decent practice prior to that, including a perfect throw to the back left corner of the end zone for Jalen Guyton. But that one was one he would like to have back.

For Bennett’s part, he is in a competition with veteran former starter Brandon Facyson to be the starter opposite Jack Jones, with Nate Hobbs manning the nickel spot. That interception should go a long way to making Bennett’s case and for the former fourth round pick to show he is ready to get the starting job back that he lost four games into his rookie season.

Hobbs took issue with a question suggesting that Bennett’s issue to start last season was a lack of confidence.

“I don’t like when people say ‘he’s trying to get confident’,” Hobbs said. “He’s confident. You’re in the NFL for a reason. Whether it looks like you got beat on the play and your confidence is down, that’s how it looks to the outside world. I feel like he’s a confident young man and he brings it every day. Some people need a little bit to get started. And when he gets started, he’s a competitor. And so he’s confident to me.”

Three seasons ago, Hobbs was in the same situation as Bennett was last season. Both were mid-round draft picks who were starters right out the gates. But Hobbs had instant success. Bennett struggled early on and it was clear he needed a bit more time to find his footing in the NFL and in this defense.

Now heading into his second season in the NFL and in the same scheme, this is when the team expects him to be ready.

Jack Jones named Raiders ‘ultimate X-factor’

Two NFL minds independently chose Jack Jones as Raiders ‘ultimate X-factor’ next season

We’re deep into the offseason when every player is poised to have a “breakout” season and/or is the “X-factor” for their respective clubs. Mainly because everyone seems to have a different idea of just who will fit either of those monickers.

What happened on Mina Kimes’ show Wednesday was two different NFL minds picking the same player independently.

Both Kimes and Gregg Rosenthal had cornerback Jack Jones as the Raiders’ “ultimate X-factor” for the upcoming season. Making for less of a conversation and more of just two people in full agreement.

“Is Jack Jones that dude?” asked Rosenthal.”This guy is special. You kind of can’t teach what he has.”

“The ceiling — this is why I chose him — is the highest of any DB on this roster,” said Kimes.

Kimes points to the interception Jones had against the Charrgers last season as one of the best interceptions she’s ever seen. Here is that pick to refresh your memory.

This pick shows off everything you want in a corner. His read and recognition to blow up the play. Then to turn back and with one hand snag the ball from behind him shows incredible hands and concentration. Then the presence of mind to turn back toward the goal line on his way down and, without missing a step, score with it.

Add all his abilities on the field with his enthusiasm for the game and for playing under coaches like Antonio Pierce and Ricky Manning Jr and the Raiders may have something special in Jones.