FanPost

Raider Zay Took the Long Way

‘Cause you’re the joke of the neighborhood

Why should you care if you’re feelin’ good

Take the long way home. –Supertramp (1979)

Was Zay Jones ever the joke of the neighborhood? Maybe—but not in Raider fan’s eyes. Not since November 25, 2021, anyway.

6:01 left in overtime, Las Vegas Raiders facing 3rd-and-18 from their own 43-yard line. Dallas Cowboys’ Micah Parsons had sacked Raiders’ quarterback Derek Carr for a seven-yard loss on the previous play. Carr took the shotgun-snap and faded back four yards to the 34-yard line. The protection-pocket held for three seconds as Carr stepped one yard into the pass and let fly with a 43-yard bomb down the right side. The football was underthrown to wide receiver Zay Jones. Jones reached back for the football, and Dallas Cowboys’ Anthony Brown was in Jones’ facemask without turning around as the football bounced off Brown’s helmet. The Cowboy was immediately flagged for his fourth pass-interference call of the game. Result? A Raider first down at the Dallas 24-yard line. Seven plays later, kicker Daniel Carlson booted the game-winning 29-yard field goal.

Las Vegas Raiders 36, Dallas Cowboys 33 in overtime.

Play of the Game.

Wait a minute, c’mon. A pass interference call is deemed play of the game? It wasn’t even an actual completion. How about DeSean Jackson (three receptions, 102 yards, one touchdown), Josh Jacobs (22 rushes, 87 yards), or Hunter Renfrow (eight receptions, 134 yards)? How about the story of Derek Carr throwing for 373 yards and Cowboys’ Dak Prescott—who almost matched Carr in a fascinating competition—throwing for 375? Heck, the only Raider player not up for play of the game was tight end Foster Moreau, who caught one pass for three yards, played a mediocre game, and was so flustered at the end of regulation time that he could not remember how to call heads or tails. Okay, amend that: Foster Moreau and the entire Raider defensive-kickoff-return-team—including Roderic Teamer, who was ejected in the third quarter.

Zay Jones was always on a different list—the "about to be cut" list. After being traded to the Silver and Black in October, 2019 for a 2021 fifth-round pick, Jones averaged two catches per game over the final ten games of the season. During the 2020 preseason, there was talk Mr. Zay would be cut from the 53-man roster. In 2020, Zay Jones caught 14 footballs all season, leading this writer to note: Tim Brown once did that in a single game. The same cut-from-roster talk was there concerning Zay Jones in Summer, 2021.

Probably Jones’ biggest cheerleader during Jones’ stay-on-the-roster challenge was Derek Carr. It turned out that Carr and Jones were practicing during the off-season. Said Mr. Carr of Zay Jones: I have him [Jones] get up early, I say it’s to beat the heat…but he’s there every time. He’s never missed one since he got here. And things happen, it doesn’t matter, he’s always there. He’s always been there for me.

Then came the game-winning 31-yard "football from sky" pass against the Baltimore Ravens and Zay Jones became a Raider to be reckoned with. Just as quickly as one could say "bench," Jones disappeared again—until "He Who Shall Not Be Named" decided to drink, drive, and destroy to excess. DeSean Jackson was added to the squad and talk of Zay Jones again lowered to a whisper. Yet there was the bell ringing on third-and-eighteen in overtime, and Zay Jones answered.

There was a lot going on during that critical Derek Carr to Zay Jones pass. The much-maligned offensive line held protection—for about three seconds. These days, that’s probably what Derek Carr can expect. Credit Carr: there was a time (and a time and a time) that he would not have thrown that football. This season, Carr has thrown for 3,414 yards in eleven games—that leads the NFL in yardage. 58 times this season, Derek Carr has thrown 20+ yard passes. Whatever assertiveness training Derek Carr took this last off-season, it worked.

After a strong, single-season best effort (5 catches for 59 yards) on Thanksgiving Day, Zay Jones was grateful. Now in his sixth season in the NFL, Jones looked at Allegiant Stadium as the airplane glided in for landing. He felt his own hard work was finally paying off. Although it was late and he was bone-tired, Zay Jones did not drive directly to his condo.

He took the long way home.

Craig Parker

Author, Football’s Blackest Hole

Sarasota FL