In Week 1, it looked like the Las Vegas Raiders were going to have a much improved running game this season. Second-year running back Ashton Jeanty had just his third career 100-yard game, toting the rock 23 times for 102 yards (4.4 ypc). Additionally, rookie Mike Washington Jr. had seven carries for 41 yards (5.9 ypc). However, after the last two weeks, that’s looking more like a fluke and says more about the Miami Dolphins than how much the Raiders have improved.
Both Jeanty and Washington struggled to find breathing room against the Los Angeles Chargers, combining for 24 rushes and 54 yards (2.3 ypc), as Las Vegas’ offensive line struggled to handle Los Angeles’ front. However, Week 3 was a slightly different story.
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The line still had room for improvement but did a much better job of creating space in New Orleans, though Jeanty had just 56 rushing yards on 19 carries (2.9 ypc). Meanwhile, it was a much smaller sample size, but Washington found success with five carries for 54 yards and a touchdown (10.8 ypc). That’s led to some debate about who should be getting the lion’s share of touches in the Raiders’ backfield moving forward.
However, to be fair, opponents are more concerned about stopping the run when the 2025 first-round pick is in the game. He’s faced “stacked box” (eight or more defenders on the first or second level of the defense) at a higher rate than the rookie has every week, according to Next Gen Stats.
Additionally, Jeanty appears to have reaggravated the ankle injury he suffered at the end of training camp in New Orleans. He wasn’t listed on the Week 3 injury report, then CBS’ broadcast team mentioned he got his ankle retaped mid-game, and he popped up on Wednesday’s Week 4 injury report with an ankle injury. Albeit, the running back was at least a full participant in practice.
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Regardless, the Raiders are about to play their biggest game of the season yet, with first place on the line against hated rival, the Kansas City Chiefs. Facing an undefeated opponent and an organization that has played in five Super Bowls since 2020, Las Vegas needs to be firing on just about all cylinders to pull off an upset as 4.5-point underdogs.
Adding more importance to the Silver and Black’s rushing attack this weekend, the Chiefs’ defense ranks third in the NFL in EPA per pass (-0.20) and is 0.01 points behind the first-place Jacksonville Jaguars, according to Sumer Sports. However, Kansas City is slightly below league average in EPA per rush, coming in at -0.07 and 17th overall.
So, whether it’s the offensive line — which could be down a starter after Jackson Powers-Johnson suffered an injury last week — or the two running backs, Klint Kubiak’s crew has to turn back the clock and establish the run this Sunday. That’s why we’ll be focusing on the ground game in this week’s game day discussion on The FEED.
The game kicks off at 1:25 p.m. PST and will air on CBS (check your local listings). I look forward to talkin’ some ball with y’all!
