Jets gave Raiders star a homecoming gift 15 years in the making

There is confidence, and then there is stubbornness to the point of being irresponsible.The Jets crossed that line Sunday by kicking the ball to Dylan Laube in the Raiders win to snap a four-game losing streak.The Raiders’ return ace entered the game leading the NFL with a 31.1-yard kickoff return average.The Westhampton, New York, native was back in the region where he grew up, with family and friends on hand to cheer on the Long Island product.Apparently, the Jets thought the occasion needed a gift.Ninety-five yards later, Laube had delivered his thank-you note.Just don’t ask him for a detailed account of the trip.

As is the case every time he returns a kick, it’s all a fog.“I have no idea what’s going on the whole play,” Laube said, smiling.That’s the funny part.The guy inflicting all this damage pretty much blacks out in the football sense, operating on instinct while everyone else watches the highlight unfold.“It’s such an adrenaline rush,” he said.Or, as he put it:“You’re just flying across the field.”The Jets can confirm.Laube’s touchdown immediately wiped out their newly acquired 13-7 lead, putting the Raiders ahead 14-13 without requiring their offense to take the field.It was the NFL’s first kickoff return for a touchdown this season and the Raiders’ first since Jacoby Ford’s 101-yarder against Cleveland on Oct.

16, 2011.Fifteen years of waiting.Then one exhilarating blur.“It’s complementary football,” Raiders quarterback Kirk Cousins said.

“Especially when you go on the road, to be able to have that seven-point gift given to your offense and get the wind at your back makes a big difference.”Gift is the operative word.The Raiders still had to block it, and Laube still had to finish it.But the Jets supplied the opportunity despite ample evidence that putting the ball in his hands was a dangerous proposition.He now leads the league with a 34.1-yard average, with five returns of at least 40 yards among his 17 at...