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Jeanty’s rookie year brought some frustration, but the workload was exactly what fantasy managers wanted. Now he gets an improved O-line, a coaching staff set to keep him in a featured role, and at least the potential for upgraded QB play. That makes Jeanty a strong late-Round 1 pick and an easy target if he reaches Round 2.
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Across 17 games, Jeanty recorded:
Jeanty reached 80 rushing yards in only three games and fell below 50 in eight matchups. Half of his total TDs also came in just two games (vs. Chicago, at Houston).
Jeanty delivered four top-5 fantasy weeks but only one other top-12 finish. He also landed at RB24 or worse in 10 games.
Overall, Jeanty finished 11th in PPR points and 13th in half-PPR points, but he slipped to 16th and 17th in points per game.
The Raiders selected Jeanty with the sixth overall pick in 2025. A weak RB depth chart of Raheem Mostert, Zamir White, and Dylan Laube further helped Jeanty finish among the league leaders in carry share (second) and snap share (fifth).
His 74.6% red-zone carry share ranked second in the league; his 84.2% carry share inside the 10-yard line ranked first.
Even Jeanty’s underlying metrics left fantasy managers wanting more.
Among 51 RBs with 90+ carries, he finished:
Jeanty managed just 1.28 yards before contact per attempt, 48th among 49 RBs with 100+ attempts. As the next section shows, he never had much runway for an efficient rookie season.
The Raiders ranked last in total yards, plays, and scoring while sitting 31st in rush attempts. They finished fourth in pass rate and second in red-zone pass rate, even with Geno Smith posting his worst passing success rate as a starter since 2014.
Vegas fired OC Chip Kelly after 11 games, but Jeanty’s efficiency barely changed without him. He went from 3.6 yards per carry under Kelly to 3.7 after and posted a better rushing success rate before the firing (42.8% vs. 38%).
O-line play really held this unit back. Vegas ranked 30th in Pro Football Focus run-blocking grade and 32nd in adjusted line yards. LT Kolton Miller and G Jackson Powers-Johnson combined to miss 22 games with injuries.
Jeanty sustained a minor ankle injury in late November, but it didn’t cost him any time.
He missed only one game across three years at Boise State (knee issue in 2023).
The Raiders will head to training camp with QB Kirk Cousins as the favorite to start, and he could hold the job into midseason after Kubiak preached patience with rookie Fernando Mendoza.
Cousins spent three seasons with Kubiak in Minnesota, including a strong 2021 campaign with Kubiak calling plays. Cousins threw for 4,221 yards, 33 TDs, and just 7 INTs that year, topping league average in both completion rate (66.3%) and yards per attempt (7.5).
But that was five years ago, and Cousins has looked like a QB in decline since leaving Minnesota. He managed only 6.4 yards per pass attempt last year and ranked 31st among 33 qualifiers in on-target throw rate.
The O-line should improve vs. last year. LT Kolton Miller and G Jackson Powers-Johnson return from injury-wrecked 2025 campaigns. The Raiders also added Linderbaum, a major center upgrade after his fourth-place finish among 41 qualifiers in PFF run-blocking grade.
Jeanty should stay well ahead of rookie Mike Washington Jr. after new HC Klint Kubiak mentioned Christian McCaffrey-like usage. Last year’s Raiders already treated him like a feature back, and the new staff appears ready to keep it that way.
Kubiak did orchestrate a near-even split between Kenneth Walker and Zach Charbonnet last season as Seattle’s OC, but Jeanty’s top-10 draft capital points to a different setup alongside a Round 4 rookie who didn’t really break out until his final college season (at age 22).
Kubiak has also featured Dalvin Cook and Alvin Kamara heavily, with Cook averaging 21.7 touches and a 75.9% snap share for the 2021 Vikings and Kamara reaching 21.1 touches on a 70.8% snap share for the 2024 Saints. All four of those numbers ranked top-8 among RBs in those years.
Jeanty’s durability helps make the plan realistic. He missed just one game over three college seasons, stayed injury-free on 397 touches in his final Boise State campaign, and followed with 321 touches over 17 games as an NFL rookie.
Jeanty also brings zone-scheme experience that fits Kubiak’s history. Per Fantasy Points, 62.2% of his runs came on zone concepts last season, and he averaged 4.1 yards per carry on those attempts (vs. 3.02 in a man/gap scheme).
Our projections place Jeanty sixth among RBs with 299 carries, narrowly behind James Cook and Saquon Barkley.
There’s room for him to beat that number and contribute heavily as a receiver, too, given Vegas’ lack of pass-catching depth. We project him for the fourth-most targets at the position (78.7). That type of volume would give Jeanty a shot at finishing as a top-3 fantasy RB.
The Cousins/Mendoza duo and a new-look O-line should help the offense, but that’s not saying much after a dreadful 2025. Can this unit bolster Jeanty’s scoring chances enough to support a late-Round 1 ADP?
We’re not betting that Washington will siphon a bothersome amount of work from Jeanty, but there’s a chance he gets enough on that front to hurt Jeanty vs. other top-level fantasy RBs.
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More Big Plays Coming For Slimmed Down Ashton Jeanty?
More Big Plays Coming For Slimmed Down Ashton Jeanty?
Raiders RB Ashton Jeanty changed his diet this offseason and is down to 207 pounds, according to Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer. Jeanty was 211 pounds at the Combine. It's a small change but one that will hopefully result in more big plays from Jeanty this season.
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Ashton Jeanty Set for Christian McCaffrey Usage?
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Is Mike Washington a Premier Handcuff?
ESPN’s Ryan McFadden believes rookie RB Mike Washington Jr. is in “prime position” to win Vegas’ No. 2 RB job. McFadden points to a thin depth chart and HC Klint Kubiak’s preference for a two-RB system as positives for the rookie.
Roman Hemby To Battle For Raiders' Backup Job
Roman Hemby To Battle For Raiders' Backup Job
The Raiders signed undrafted free agent RB Roman Hemby. Hemby broke out as a sophomore at Maryland, rushing 188 times for 989 yards and 10 TDs. He caught 33 passes that year, the first of three straight seasons with 30+ receptions. His receiving output dipped to 17 grabs for 165 yards at Indiana in 2025. But he paired with Kaelon Black to form one of the nation’s best backfield tandems. Hemby tallied career highs in carries (230) and rushing yards (1,120). Among the 20 RBs invited to the NFL Combine, Hemby ranked 16th in 2025 rushing market share (31.2%), and 11th in yards after contact per attempt (3.36). He ranked 18th in 2025 missed tackles forced per attempt (0.16) and ninth in receiving yards per route run (0.95). He is currently 23 years old.
Raiders Get Much-Needed O-Line Help In Tyler Linderbaum
Raiders Get Much-Needed O-Line Help In Tyler Linderbaum
The Raiders and C Tyler Linderbaum agreed to a three-year, $81 million deal with $60 million guaranteed on the first day of free agency. It makes Linderbaum the highest-paid interior lineman in NFL history. His $27 million average annual salary is $9 million more than any other center.
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