It’s been a slow start for Chandler Jones with the Las Vegas Raiders. He hasn’t recorded a sack yet and has looked old, at times. In his defense, he did deal with an injury during training camp that cost him a ton of practice time and he did not take a single snap in the preseason.
Jones did look better in Week 3 against the Titans, totaling three pressures, two hurries and a pass-rush win rate over 14 percent, according to Pro Football Focus. But the Raiders need him to start bringing down the quarterback soon.
The good news is that Jones will get to face his favorite quarterback on Sunday; Russell Wilson. In a recent piece by Paul Gutierrez of ESPN, he revealed that Jones has recorded 16.5 sacks against Wilson during his NFL career:
“Raiders edge rusher Chandler Jones has zero sacks through three games, and is fast becoming a target for impatient fans. Keep an eye, then, on the four-time Pro Bowler possibly getting untracked against his favorite target in Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson.
Jones has sacked Wilson 16.5 times in his career, the most sacks Jones has against any one QB. It’s a rivalry that dates to Jones’ days in Arizona and Wilson’s in Seattle.”
Wilson tends to hold onto the ball longer than most quarterbacks, giving pass rushers more time to bring him down. While Wilson is still tough to sack, Jones has a knack for getting him to the ground.
With the Broncos struggling at the offensive tackle position, this should be a game where Jones makes a big impact. If he can dominate his matchup, he’ll give the Raiders a great chance to win their first game of the season. But if he doesn’t, it’s time to officially get concerned about Jones and his fit with the franchise.