It didn’t take long for NFL fans to cite the irony when Jakobi Meyers agreed to join with the Raiders, given that Las Vegas previously benefited from the biggest lowlight of Meyers’ career.
It also didn’t take long for the former New England Patriots wideout to be asked about it again, this time as a member of his new team.
Meyers, who was introduced as a member of the Raiders on Thursday after signing a reported three-year contract with Las Vegas, was asked about his game-altering backwards pass at Allegiant Stadium in Week 15 last season.
“I was waiting on it, I was waiting on it,” Meyers responded with a smirk, per the Raiders. “Thank you. I appreciate you, man. Thank you.”
Meyers, similar to how he did immediately after the crushing moment, then handled it as well as he could. He spoke about the lesson he learned from the experience, and how his former Patriots teammates stood up for him and rallied around him.
“I mean, that was a humbling experience. As a man, as a football player, that was just tough,” Meyers said. “I knew what it meant to the team I was on at the time and so it really hurt me. Because like I said, family is really big for me. So when I went through it, in the moment my heart was broken.
“But days later, seeing how guys kind of rallied around me, it built me up as a person,” he continued. “So now I know whenever one of my teammates messes up who I want to be in that situation, how I want to help them, what type of love and support I want to give.”
The play being referenced, of course, is Meyers’ lateral to quarterback Mac Jones with less than 10 seconds remaining in a 24-24 game. Meyers’ backwards pass was intercepted at midfield by Raiders defender Chandler Jones and returned for the game-winning touchdown as time expired. It was an unspeakable loss and proved to be a crucial blow to New England’s playoff aspirations, as well.
“Now if you’re asking directly what happened? I don’t know,” Meyers said. “That’s the truth. I really don’t know. I had the ball and then I didn’t have the ball. That was the end of it. But as far as growth, it taught me a lot about myself and how I want to help people in the future.”
Following the departure of Meyers, New England’s leading receiver each of the last three years, the Patriots reportedly signed JuJu Smith-Schuster on a similar three-year agreement.
