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One Of The Saddest Sagas In Raiders History Ends: Chandler Jones Released

Originally posted on The Raider Ramble | By Mario Tovar | Last updated 9/30/23

After one of the saddest sagas in recent Las Vegas Raiders history has come to an end, Chandler Jones was released on Saturday.

One of the most divisive topics among Raiders fans has been Jones and his actions since he was kept out of the team’s practice facilities prior to the season. What started as a joke on social media devolved very quickly. Surely, you’ve heard about it all by now. Concerning (even disturbing) videos, live broadcasts, and, of course, tweets, all posted by Jones himself.

The Raiders, for their part, remained largely null on the matter. When Josh McDaniels did make a statement, making it known that he cares about all of his players, it wasn’t good enough for some. To say the Jones saga hasn’t been a distraction would be disingenuous. Let’s be honest, the organization could only take so much.

Mental health breakdown or not, the Raiders and the NFL are businesses. Yes, that’s a cold statement, but parting ways seemed inevitable once Jones was arrested this week.

The arrest was enough for the Raiders to finally release Chandler Jones.

— Vic Tafur (@VicTafur) September 30, 2023

Ramifications for the Raiders following Chandler Jones’ release…

With Jones now a former Raider, attention can shift to the future. More specifically, what’s going to happen with regard to the financial impact? Both CBS’ Logan Reever and Vic Tafur of The Athletic made some interesting observations worth mentioning.

The financial blow is substantial.

The #Raiders are subject to $12 million in dead money against the salary cap in 2023 and 2024.#RaiderNation https://t.co/qfTtFisnZC

— Logan Reever (@loganreever) September 30, 2023

Dead cap hit of $13.2 million this season and $12.3 million next season.
Raiders may try to recoup some of that money back as a result of Jones being placed on the NFI list. https://t.co/lYZCEgzwx7

— Vic Tafur (@VicTafur) September 30, 2023

Whether Dave Ziegler and the Raiders can recoup this financial loss or not, Jones’ signing isn’t a good look right now. In fact, the entire Vegas front office has seen better days lately.

It seems like every single year something uneventful or downright nuts happens to the Raiders. This isn’t making light of Jones’ issues. Still, it seems par for the course for something like this to happen to the Silver and Black. Regardless, there’s football to be played. Up next, the team must handle business in L.A. on Sunday, or a 1-3 start could bring about some repercussions for the locker room.

This article first appeared on The Raider Ramble and was syndicated with permission.

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