Through his first two NFL games, Las Vegas Raiders rookie running back Ashton Jeanty has yet to crack 20 carries in a single outing. He logged 19 attempts in the Week 1 win over the New England Patriots, but that workload dipped to just 11 in Week 2 against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Jeanty has also yet to surpass 50 rushing yards in a game, underscoring what has been a tough opening stretch to his pro career. Moreover, it will be a challenging Week 3 game for Jeanty and Co., considering that the Washington Commanders have only given up 209 rushing yards and 3.9 yards per attempt through two games this season.
Nonetheless, the Raiders’ running game will look to get going in the nation’s capital, and ESPN NFL analyst Dan Orlovsky is calling out the Silver and Black to get their running back going.
“They’ve got to get Ashton Jeanty going and give him more chances. I think it’s twofold for me,” Orlovsky said on “NFL Live.” “One, he needs more carries, and two, they’ve got to get him to the line of scrimmage to give him a shot. He’s been hit behind or at the line of scrimmage the most in the NFL. He’s getting less than a yard down the field before getting contacted.
“The way I’ve always thought about it is when you get into these situations as an offense and you’re trying to get a guy going in your run game, less is more… The Raiders got to figure out this player a little bit more in their run game. They got to figure out ways to get him to the line of scrimmage and give him a chance.”
Raiders’ Ashton Jeanty Ready for a Bigger Role
Jeanty has always thrived on a heavy workload, making this a new challenge for him. He pointed out to the Raiders that drafting him so high didn’t make sense if they weren’t going to put the ball in his hands.
“I don’t think you draft a guy like me to not give me carries and touches,“ Jeanty told reporters on Wednesday. “I’m ready for the responsibility … and it’s gonna start from me in the run game, and I gotta continue to get better.”
Pete Carroll Reveals Plan for Ashton Jeanty
Raiders head coach Pete Carroll explained that the plan is to ease Jeanty into his role as an NFL running back. Because of that approach, Carroll downplayed concerns about the team’s ground game through the first two weeks. After the September 15 loss to the Chargers, he was asked directly about Jeanty’s performance.
“We’re just getting started,“ Carroll said postgame. “He’s breaking into the NFL. He’s figuring it out. When he had 11 or something carries, he’s already had 11. He’ll get more. That’ll come. We’re going to have to run the football better than we did, more effectively.
“We got to get more yards; we have 50 or 60 yards or something rushing — that’s not enough. We got to get more than that. I’d like to see that just as well as you would. The issue with him, trying to get him 25 carries or something like that, we’re breaking him in. So that’ll come.”
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