With Josh Jacobs's contract drama leaking into July, could the Las Vegas Raiders turn to Zamir White to handle the load at running back in 2023?
In the fourth round of the 2022 NFL Draft, the Las Vegas Raiders selected Georgia running back Zamir White. During the same offseason, new general manager Dave Ziegler made it clear that he was not high on Josh Jacobs, declining his fifth-year option, and playing him in the Hall of Fame Game.
All Jacobs did to combat that was lead the NFL in rushing yards, proving to be a key for a Raiders offense that struggled mightily at times last season. This offseason, the Raiders placed the franchise tag on Jacobs, but he has yet to sign, and now there are reports that he could sit out the 2023 NFL season.
While that is not likely to happen, if he does sit out a period of the regular season, the Raiders are likely to turn to Zamir White as the feature back. The big question there is whether or not White is ready to shoulder the kind of load Jacobs did in 2022.
During his three seasons at Georgia, White carried the ball a total of 382 times, which is only 42 more carries than Jacobs had in 2022 alone. He was incredibly productive, however, averaging 5.4 yards a carry across his last two seasons in Athens, and scored 22 touchdowns in that time span as well.
Sharing the wealth in college does not mean a player cannot carry the load in the pros, as Jacobs had only 251 carries during his three-year run at Alabama. Since being a first round pick of the Raiders back in 2019, Jacobs has established himself as one of the best young backs in the game, and at only 25-years old, a new contract would not be a bad move by Las Vegas.
I know the running back position is not valued at the NFL level, but Jacobs is coming off a career-year, and has a lot of good football left in him.
Raiders have to find a way to get Jacobs under contract in 2023
The Raiders could have a very exciting offense in 2023, as Davante Adams returns, Michael Mayer was drafted at tight end, and Jakobi Meyers should be an excellent addition at wide receiver. The offensive line is also better than it has been in a while, and if Jimmy Garoppolo can stay healthy, he has a knack for winning games at the NFL level.
However, the offense hinges on whether or not Jacobs returns.
White is a very interesting player, and one that should have a much bigger role in the offense in 2023, even if Jacobs is there for the full 17-game slate. The Raiders have question marks on offense, including at quarterback and along the offensive line, so the best-case scenario would be Jacobs returning, and White getting more of an opportunity this Fall