The Las Vegas Raiders didn't set themselves or Ashton Jeanty up for success by selecting him with the No. 6 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. By taking him so early, the expectations around the young player were heightened, and the Raiders also missed out on several game-changing offensive linemen.
Raider Nation has been reluctant to blame Jeanty very much, as they can see clearly that the offensive line is a disaster. Plus, the overall ineptitude of the group has prevented him from getting as many touches as they wanted due to turnovers, trailing in games or generally failing to move the ball.
However, fans can also recognize that this organization hasn't had the best luck with early draft picks. JaMarcus Russell is the infamous example, but others like Clelin Ferrell, Johnathan Abram, Damon Arnette, Henry Ruggs III and Tyree Wilson have all failed to work out as well.
Raiders' Ashton Jeanty is already unfairly being called a "bust"
Obviously, Jeanty is far from heading down that path. He has 700 rushing yards this season and 597 of them have come after contact. He has forced 44 missed tackles. Jeanty is doing his part. But that doesn't mean others aren't already throwing around the "B" word, like FanSided.com's Justin Carter.
"I firmly believe Ashton Jeanty is going to turn things around and be a very good NFL back, but being a 'bust' isn't just about individual play. Context matters, and in this case, the context is that drafting a running back in the top 10 was bad positional value. Vegas needed Jeanty to be an immediate star to justify the price it paid for him, and that hasn't been the case at all," Carter wrote. "There have been flashes, but his rookie season has largely been a waste. With how short running back lifespans tend to be, that's a very bad sign going forward."
Carter, unfortunately, is exactly right. Being a bust isn't just about the individual player. Jeanty can be as good and elusive as he has been this year, but because of all that is crumbling around him, he's had nowhere near the production or the impact that the Raiders needed him to.
Las Vegas still has the worst rushing attack in the NFL, and by a good margin. Jeanty is spearheading that. Of course, Jeanty is not a bust, but this will always look like the wrong pick if the Raiders don't figure out the offensive line. NFL.com's Bucky Brooks also gave the team a "C" grade for the selection.
Again, that is fair because it doesn't detract from how talented Jeanty is, but it doesn't sugarcoat how bad things have been for the Silver and Black. It just hurts to see the Los Angeles Chargers get a "B" for the Omarion Hampton selection, and to see other later-round rookie running backs thriving.
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During Sunday's post-game show following the Philadelphia Eagles' 31-0 beatdown of the Raiders, host Amber Theoharis and former NFL wideout James Jones, as well as Hall of Fame cornerback Eric Allen, talked about grading Jeanty's season thus far. Theoharis gave Jeanty an "I" for "Incomplete."
Jones gave the same grade, but was a bit harsher in his evaluation.
"I would have the same grade, but not only that, I haven't seen some consistent runs, even behind a bad offensive line. I haven't seen consistent runs to where it's like, 'Man, he broke two tackles and got seven yards' or, 'He looked explosive on this run.' It's really, really tough to grade," Jones said. "He's looked good in open space, but running in between the tackles, he has been struggling. So, it's a lot of stuff to work on. I know he's just a rookie. I know he's going to get better, but I don't know where or how to grade Ashton Jeanty this year."
Fans get Jones' point. Despite how bad the offensive line has been, Raider Nation would like to see a bit more problem-solving from the young player, as they selected him so early in the draft to rise above these issues. His talent should be enough to supercede poor blocking, at least sometimes.
While Jeanty is great at breaking tackles in open space, he just hasn't been making defenders miss in the box. He's had a hard time shedding runners and getting to that second level, and in that way, he has been at the whim of a poor offensive line. The best running backs have success in spite of them.
Allen and Jones then broke down some film from the Week 15 matchup between the Raiders and Eagles, a game in which Jeanty totaled just 35 rushing yards on nine carries. They brought up a clip of Jeanty making the wrong read on a short gain, claiming he left yards on the table.
"Bounce this (outside), right? I want to see some explosiveness from you. I want to see you, even if, right now, we know our offensive line is not dominant," Jones said. "If you take some bad runs, some tackles for losses, trying to be special, that's what you do because right here, just running in there and running into big (Jordan Davis), you get a yard."
Then, Allen led the charge for the next clip.
"Again, first and 10. Obviously, a run down. You have an opportunity to choose which gap to run in. So, you can bounce it back and instead of bouncing outside, he bounces it inside," Allen said. "So, it just seems like the decision-making right now with the running back situation and the offensive line just not in sync."
As disappointing as this campaign has been for the entire team and fan base, it has been particularly frustrating for Jeanty and those who vehemently defended his high selection. Let's be clear, however: Ashton Jeanty is not a bust.
But if he doesn't start to turn things around, even if it's still not his fault, folks around the league are going to start throwing that word around a whole lot more when talking about him.