Meet the Silver and Black’s newest cornerback, Chris Jones. Who is Chris Jones, and who are the other outside cornerbacks behind projected starters Rock Ya-Sin and Trayvon Mullen?
The focus on cornerbacks this off-season for the Las Vegas Raiders has been evident, bringing in two starting-caliber cornerbacks in Anthony Averett and Rock Ya-Sin. Additionally, Darius Phillips agreed to terms with the Raiders during the legal tampering period, with Cre’Von LeBlanc being brought in before free agency started.
Earlier in the week, the Silver and Black added their latest addition to the cornerback room, signing veteran Chris Jones.
Undrafted in 2018, Jones spent the first two seasons of his NFL career in Arizona. Between ’20 and ’21, the former Cardinals’ corner found his way on three different rosters: The Lions, Vikings, and Titans.
The Nebraska alum has appeared in 29 contests during his four-year career, starting in 6. In 2020, Jones was targeted 31 times, allowing a completion percentage of 74.2%, and an opposing quarterback rating of 121.3. If those numbers weren’t enough of an eyesore, the Raiders’ newest cornerback missed 17.4% of his tackles – One missed tackle for every 5.7 tackle attempts.
Fear not, Raider Nation; Jones is coming off of his best season yet. This past year, on 10 throws his way, Chris Jones allowed only 3 passes to be completed. This 30% completion percentage resulted in an opposing QB rating of 39.6, with a missed tackle percentage of 0. Quite the turnaround, even if the sample size was on the smaller side.
With the massive improvement came a drastic change noted by Pro Football Focus. After a career-low 46.0 grade in ’20, Jones flew up to a 67.3 in ’21.
The Raiders added depth to the outside behind projected starters Rock Ya-Sin and Trayvon Mullen with this move, but Jones is far from the only depth on the outside. That said, let’s dive into Las Vegas’ depth chart.