Oakland Raiders 2019 rookie class is making an instant impact
By Daniel Davis
Running back Josh Jacobs has been the best rookie the Raiders drafted in 2019. Jacobs made an instant impact and made his debut against the Broncos with 2two touchdowns and 85 yards on 23 carries with a 3.7 average.
However, the best stats of that game was 63 yards after contact was gained, which was fourth behind players who had breakout plays:
- Marlon Mack with 87 – 63 came on 1 play
- Todd Gurley II with 73 – 25 came on 1 play
- Mark Ingram II with 70 – 49 came on 1 play
- Josh Jacobs (tied with three other players) with 63 – the longest run was 13 yards (least among those he’s tied with)
He also ranked third in avoided tackles (tackles where he forced the defender to miss/broke the tackle) with six, only behind Le’Veon Bell with nine and Alvin Kamara with seven, both with lower rushing grades I might add.
So far on the season, he’s tied with Leonard Fournette with a 3.84 yards per attempt, 6th in yards after contact with 476 of 620 total rushing yards, 5.0 yards per rush, 30 first downs, and 4 touchdowns.
Look, I’m not saying Josh Jacobs looks like LaDanian Tomilson in his prime, but I’m also not saying he isn’t. As it stands, he is a front-runner to win the NFL’s Offensive Rookie of the Year honors this season.’