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On Thursday night former Pittsburgh Steelers outside linebacker Jamir Jones made his debut for the Los Angeles Rams and had an immediate impact on special teams.
Here’s what happened: Late in the third quarter of the Thursday Night Football game between the Rams and Seahawks, Seattle had a fourth and 14 from deep in its own territory, setting up a punt from its own 21-yard line.
Seahawks punter Michael Dickson came out to punt, but his kick was blocked by Jones, who came through the middle of Seattle’s protection untouched.
But with no other Rams players in the vicinity, Dickson was able to gather up the ball at the 11-yard line. He ran with it ten yards or so and then kicked it again, with the second punt traveling 68 yards thanks to a series of fortuitous bounces.
Penalty on the Play?
The officials threw a flag on the play but later picked it up. As it turns out, it seems Dickson’s second kick should have been penalized, not because he punted the ball twice but because the second kick occurred after he appears to have crossed the line of scrimmage.
Here’s how the play was explained by Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk:
“A second punt after a blocked punt does not violate the rules, as long as both kicks happen behind the line of scrimmage and the ball has not crossed the line of scrimmage. … However, the second punt must be behind the line of scrimmage. The available video evidence shows that the punter had crossed the line when the ball was kicked a second time.
It should have been a foul. Because plays involving the line of scrimmage are reviewable, the Rams could have thrown the challenge flag. They did not.”
Though Seattle got a favorable result on this particular play, the Rams went on to win the game and improved to 4-1 on the season. Meanwhile, the Seahawks fell to 2-3.
Seattle’s next game isn’t until Sunday Oct. 17, when they travel to Pittsburgh to take on the Steelers at Heinz Field for a Sunday Night Football matchup.
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Jamir Jones Was Waived by the Steelers on Sept. 28
Entering training camp it seemed like Jones was a longshot to make the Steelers as a backup outside linebacker. But he earned a place on the roster with a strong training camp and preseason and came into the year as the No. 4 option at the position, which allowed him to escape working in retail.
However, the Steelers waived him in late September in favor of former MVFC Defensive Player of the Year Derrek Tuszka, who has been getting playing time thanks to groin injuries suffered by the likes of fellow outside linebackers T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith.
The Steelers signed Jones in April after the former undrafted free agent worked out at Notre Dame’s 2021 Pro Day. He was one of a handful of members of the 2020 draft class that the Steelers (re)discovered at a 2021 Pro Day, including wide receiver/kick returner Mathew Sexton (Eastern Michigan).
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