Oakland Raiders Players Set For Big 2015 Seasons

Aug 28, 2014; Oakland, CA, USA; Oakland Raiders guard Gabe Jackson (66) against the Seattle Seahawks at O.co Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Gabe Jackson

The improvement of the Raiders running game wasn’t Murray alone—rookie guard Gabe Jackson had much to do with it too. Jackson stumbled out of the gate in run-blocking then started to play like the player the Raiders drafted him to be down the stretch. According to Pro Football Focus, Jackson didn’t have a run-blocking grade over +0.07 during the first 14 games then was above +1.2 for two of the last three.

So while Murray deserves his props, you have to give Jackson his because there’s no way Murray could have done it without him. Then again, the two could go hand-in-hand because when an offensive lineman sees a running back do something with the ball, he will go harder. It’s going to be fun watching Murray run Jackson’s way for the smash-mouth football movement going on in Oakland now.

Jackson’s bad start with his good finish to the season put him in the average category. And the rookie is definitely going to build and improve on that for the 2015 season. So Jackson will definitely go from the average to good column for the 2015 season.

Next: Rod Streater