Jalen Richard will make impact behind Josh Jacobs for Oakland Raiders

While Josh Jacobs will be the main running back for the Oakland Raiders in 2019, Jalen Richard will once again play a big role in Jon Gruden’s offense.

Last season, the Oakland Raiders got a tremendous effort from Jalen Richard, who became one of the better pass-catching running backs in the NFL. Playing within the Raiders rotation at running back, Richard proved himself to be a major part of Jon Gruden’s offense, as he continues to get better at the position.

During the 2019 NFL Draft, the Oakland Raiders used one of their three first round picks on a running back, bringing in Josh Jacobs from Alabama. Though he is likely to be the team’s feature back in 2019, that does not mean that Richard won’t play a big role in Year 2 of the Jon Gruden return.

For Richard, he has the ability to impact the game in so many ways, and he will benefit from the Raiders bringing in Jacobs. Alongside Doug Martin behind Jacobs, Richard will be able to be put in positions where he can succeed, as the plan will be to get him the ball in space, and let him operate.

Derek Carr has the right blend of weapons around him this season, as the Raiders have brought in a ton of skill player talent this offseason. However, he does have a fantastic rapport with Richard, who is coming off a season that saw him grab 68 catches on 81 targets last season.

He may not get that many looks, but he will be important none the less.

In recent days, the talk surrounding Richard is that his workload will be lessened in 2019, and that is obvious considering the fact the Raiders brought in a first round running back. While less, it does not mean that Richard won’t have opportunities to affect the outcome of games this upcoming season, and he should once again be a sparkplug out of the Raiders backfield.