Las Vegas Raiders vs Houston Texans 2022 Week 7: Studs and Duds

Las Vegas Raiders vs Houston Texans 2022 Week 7: Studs and Duds

Stud – Josh Jacobs

If you had to pick an offensive MVP of the season so far the runaway pick would be Josh Jacobs. The young running back has been the heartbeat of this Raiders offense and has exceeded all expectations in a contract year after the team declined his fifth-year option.

After setting career highs in yards in Weeks 4 and 5, Jacobs followed it up by matching his career high in touchdowns with 3 against the Houston Texans. He rushed for 143 yards on just 20 carries and set the tone with punishing runs against a Texans defense that simply could not stop him.

He was at his best in the red zone as he bullied his way into the end zone to cap off 3 key drives for the Raiders.

The only concern right now for Jacobs is whether all of this punishment will come back to haunt them as he is shouldering the offensive load literally and figuratively. The Raiders should be looking to get rookie Zamir White a bit more involved but when your workhorse back is playing like this it’s hard to take him out of the game for anything other than a quick breather.

His next test comes against a New Orleans Saints defense that is middle of the pack against the run and is giving up 4.6 yards per carry so he should have plenty of success against them. The Raiders seem to have found an offensive identity built around a punishing run game and Jacobs is at the heart of that success.