When the Las Vegas Raiders selected running back Mike Washington Jr. out of Arkansas in the fourth round of the 2026 NFL Draft, it brought the vision of Klint Kubiak more into focus.
For a while now, we've known Kubiak's desire to bring in another running back alongside Ashton Jeanty to be able to deploy a two-back system, similarly to how he did with the Seattle Seahawks.
Of course, Jeanty is a special player with high draft capital invested into him, but one expert is here to tell us just how special Washington has been (and can be) as a pro. Dr. Antonio Maurice Daniels, of Razorbackers, is an Arkansas football savant who took some time to speak with us following the pick of Washington to Vegas:
"Although Jeremiyah Love is the running back who receives the most attention, no running back in the 2026 NFL Draft combines the size, power, and speed that Mike Washington Jr. possesses.
"He played on a team with one of the historically worst defenses, leading him and his fellow offensive teammates to feel they had to score on every possession, which is unreasonable pressure."
Mike Washington Jr. joined the Las Vegas Raiders just in time for a nagging issue to be put to bed
That's a lot to unpack, especially when we're trying to understand a comparison between Washington, a fourth-round selection, and the draft's best running back in generational talent Jeremiyah Love.
But, I think the more intriguing part of this analysis comes when looking at the pressure placed on Washington and the Arkansas offense in college, thanks to a porous defense on the other side.
For the past two seasons, the Raiders' defense has finished in the bottom 10 in points allowed per game. By default, Las Vegas' offense, for as much as it has struggled by itself, has felt similar pressure to score as Washington's Arkansas offense.
On the one hand, Raiders fans can relate to an eerily familiar situation. This defense has not been what it should be.
However, Washington comes into a situation in Vegas where he and the Raiders should be able to tell a different story in 2026. This offseason, specifically, the Raiders poured a ton of resources into building up that defense: Nakobe Dean, Quay Walker, Kwity Paye, Taron Johnson, plus the incoming class of rookies featuring a fourth-round gamble on Jermod McCoy.
The funny part, of course, was the fact that they did so while assuming Maxx Crosby wouldn't be part of the picture. Yet, as we know now, Crosby is staying put in Las Vegas, and the Raiders' defensive outlook suddenly looks that much better.
Not only will Washington avoid some of the pressure of having to be "the guy" in this offense, thanks to being paired with Jeanty, but he'll also (theoretically) avoid a very familiar problem of having to support a putrid defense on the opposite side of the ball.
Add us as a preferred source on Google