Is Mike Washington a Premier Handcuff?

What They're Saying

Back in February, Kubiak said he's looking for a "two-man show" at RB. “It’s a long season. You don’t want to put all the carries and targets on one guy."

Here’s Brandon Hunt, the Raiders vice president of player personnel, on his expectations for the rookie.

"[Washington] is going to generate explosives for us and just another weapon that's going to add to our offense," Hunt said. "And Klint and [OC Andrew] Janocko are going to do a great job of utilizing them [to] help us score the football."

Pro Football Focus’ Breakaway Rate backs up Hunt’s point. Washington ranked seventh among 69 qualifying RBs last year in the metric, which measures the share of rushing yardage produced on runs of 15+ yards.

2026 Fantasy Football Impact

Kubiak showed a two-back lean last year, with Kenneth Walker narrowly edging Zach Charbonnet in carries per game, 13.0 to 11.5.

That wasn’t the case in New Orleans in 2024, when Alvin Kamara easily out-carried Jamaal Williams 228-48. Kubiak’s first OC stint in Minnesota also produced workhorse usage for Dalvin Cook, who averaged 21.7 touches per game to Alexander Mattison’s 10.3.

Training camp should sort out the exact roles. For now, we project Ashton Jeanty as the clear lead back thanks to his superior talent and Round 1 draft capital. He sits at 17.6 carries per game, well ahead of Washington’s 4.9.

Our PPR RB rankings show Jeanty as a top-five player. Meanwhile, Washington only needs to beat out Dylan Laube, Chris Collier, and rookie UDFA Roman Hemby for the No. 2 role. Washington profiles as an appealing handcuff worth considering in the later rounds.