The Las Vegas Raiders took a fairly large gamble on Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty with the No. 6 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. For as bad as the team has been, conventional wisdom would have indicated that they should draft a player who plays a more impactful position.
However, the Raiders had the worst rushing attack in the league last season, by a significant margin, so the team remained firm in its belief that fixing their worst attribute was well worth a premier draft pick.
Unfortunately, Las Vegas' dreadful offensive line play has led to Jeanty being underwhelming for much of the first half of the season. The rookie running back's performance in the embarrassing 31-0 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 7 showed that he was never going to save this team by himself, which has led to questions about whether or not Las Vegas made the right selection.
Ashton Jeanty was never going to make this Raiders offense competent
Jeanty has had an inconsistent start to his career, as he has recorded 445 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 111 carries, while adding 86 receiving yards and two touchdowns on 15 receptions. However, most of that production came in a two-game stretch.
He had the worst performance of his young career in Week 7, however, finishing with just 21 rushing yards on six carries and one reception for 13 yards against the Chiefs. FanSided's Marcus Mosher noted that drafting Jeanty may have been a mistake for Las Vegas.
"This is where team building is so much more important than just falling in love with a player," Mosher wrote. "I think Ashton Jeanty is going to be really good. But it was irresponsible for the Raiders to pick him at No. 6."
RELATED: Raiders fans are fuming at Pete Carroll's comments after blowout vs. Chiefs
Jeanty has certainly shown promise. He ranks 13th in the league in rushing yards, while ranking third in yards after contact, first in broken tackles, 34th in yards before contact and dead-last in yards before tackle per attempt. This shows that his struggles are largely based on playing behind a poor offensive line.
While he has the potential to be a true star, his selection is further proof that drafting a running back so high is risky. The Raiders clearly had bigger needs than a running back, and in the past, fans have seen great offensive lines improve the production of the rushing attack. On the contrary, there has rarely been a running back who can improve the production of the offensive line.
The way Las Vegas' offensive line has played would hinder even the best running backs. Meanwhile, the position has one of the shortest shelf lives in the NFL, whereas offensive linemen tend to have some of the longest careers in the league. While it is in no way a knock on Jeanty, the Raiders likely would have been better off by building in the trenches before adding skill players.
Furthermore, if Jeanty is not involved in the offense, which he wasn't in Week 7 with just seven touches, his talent is being wasted. With Brock Bowers and Jakobi Meyers sidelined, the strategy should have been to lean on the rookie and attempt to control the tempo of the game. But the coaching staff failed to get him involved in any real capacity, proving he won't save this team.