Jack Jones benched: Raiders cornerback sits out 1st quarter of Week 4

Mike Moraitis

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Jack Jones benched: Raiders cornerback sits out 1st quarter of Week 4 image

UPDATE: If Jack Jones was indeed benched by the Las Vegas Raiders, it was only for the first quarter, as the cornerback is on the field to begin the second. Head coach Antonio Pierce will almost certainly address this after the game (end of update).

The Las Vegas Raiders took the field for their Week 4 game against the Cleveland Browns and cornerback Jack Jones was not on the field.

Jones was not listed on the injury report this week and there was no report of an injury for him in pregame warm-ups, which means head coach Antonio Pierce is benching his best cornerback.

What's behind it? Well, it might have something to do with the "business decisions" comment Pierce made after last week's loss. The Raiders head coach revealed that some players didn't give max effort in the Panthers game, and he added that there would be changes as a result.

“As the game went on, there were some individuals that made business decisions, so we’ll make business decisions going forward as well,” Pierce said after the loss.

One player who was caught making "business decisions" was Jones, who was clearly not trying to tackle Panthers ball-carriers on two separate occasions. That could be the reason why Jones isn't on the field to start the game.

Assuming that is behind Jones' benching, Pierce is sending a very clear message that he will not tolerate any semblance of lackluster effort. There is no more clear way to send that message than by benching a starter like Jones.

However, it's another tough blow to a Raiders defense that is already without Maxx Crosby, Malcolm Koonce, Marcus Epps and Divine Deablo, all of whom are injured.

We'll see if Jones finds his way into the game at some point, but as of right now it looks like he's going to sit in Week 4.

Mike Moraitis

Mike Moraitis Photo

After cutting his teeth with Bleacher Report, Mike Moraitis has covered the Los Angeles Rams and Tennessee Titans for FanSided, and the Titans and New York Giants for USA TODAY Sports Media Group. On top of his duties with Sporting News, Mike is the managing editor and lead writer for Titans Wire.