Mike Washington Jr. made quite a name for himself during the summer. So much so that when Ashton Jeanty got hurt during training camp ahead of the preseason finale, a lot of Las Vegas Raiders fans felt like there may not even be that dramatic a drop-off if the Day 3 rookie had to shoulder the load.
But Jeanty clawed his way back to playing in the opener, and he looked like the player that everyone expected when he was taken No. 6 overall. In the last two weeks, though, Jeanty looks more like the player that he was last year, and that is certainly not a good thing for him or the team.
In his defense, I seriously doubt that he's fully healthy. For how serious an injury they made it sound like, it was a quick turnaround to playing, and Jeanty has limped off in each of the team's three games and had tape put on both ankles at some point in Week 3.
"All the guys are sore. Nobody's 100%," Klint Kubiak told the media on Monday. "That's part of the NFL. You got to play through it, and Ashton's [Jeanty] done a great job of playing through it."
While I can't argue with Kubiak's first few points, I will argue against his last one and say that Washington Jr., especially after his big play and overall outing vs. the New Orleans Saints in Week 3, should be getting more of an opportunity. The Raiders have no excuse not to split snaps right now.
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Kubiak is known to be an "establish the run" kind of coach. And while he certainly hasn't failed to try, the unit has failed to succeed. After a solid showing in the opener, in which the Raiders ran for 130 yards, albeit inefficiently, the ground attack hasn't been the same.
Jeanty's 102 yards in Week 1 haven't been matched in the last two games combined, as he's taken his last 40 carries for just 104 yards, which is an atrocious 2.6 yards per rush. And not all of that is on him, as the offensive line hasn't held up its end of the bargain on every play. But they never do.
Great running backs are supposed to make do with what they have. Whether it is due to him not being 100% or Jeanty still needing to develop at this early stage in his career, he's just not doing that at the rate that he should be, which is why the run game looks as poor as it does at times.
Against the Dolphins, Jeanty forced three missed tackles, had three runs of 10 or more yards and had 79 yards after contact. In the last two games combined, he's broken three tackles, had 1 run of 10 or more yards and had 89 yards after contact. He just hasn't been the same since Week 1.
Among qualifying running backs, his rushing EPA is the worst in the NFL, by a fairly sizeable margin, too. Jeanty just doesn't look as quick or as explosive as we've become accustomed to seeing, and he has 15 yards under expected, according to NFL Next Gen Stats, which means he's missing chances.
Whatever the root cause of his struggles is, the Raiders need more from the ground game. Rotating Washington Jr. in could be a major boost, as it would give defenses multiple looks, keep both backs fresher and allow Jeanty's body not to take such a beating if he is still dealing with an ailment.
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"Mike [Washington Jr.] made a really big impact on the game and definitely earned more opportunities."
At least Kubiak is open to the idea, based on that statement from Monday's press conference.
Kubiak is absolutely right, too, as Washington Jr. has made the most of his chances. Through three games, he has roughly half as many yards as Jeanty on less than a quarter of the carries, which means that he is averaging twice as many yards per rush. Jeanty is at 3.3; Washington Jr. is at 6.8.
In 63 carries, Jeanty's longest run has been for 15 yards, and he hasn't found the end zone on the ground yet. Washington Jr., in 15 attempts, has already busted out an 18- and 36-yarder and ran for paydirt on Sunday against the Saints.
His 54 rushing yards in New Orleans came on five carries, while it took Jeanty 19 rushes to get 56 yards. And Washington Jr. had eight more yards after contact than Jeanty in 14 fewer carries this past Sunday. Even if we're not directly comparing the two, Washington Jr. clearly deserves more reps.
It is worth seeing if the rookie can replicate his success in a larger sample size and get the ground game going more. At the very least, it will give him more experience and provide less wear and tear on Jeanty's body as he works back from his ankle injury.
The two backs are so different, too, that defenses have to contain them in different ways. Putting Washington Jr. into the game more often mixes up the looks for the defense and puts them on their heels because he is a big play waiting to happen, and he can bust a big run at any moment.
Nobody here is saying that Jeanty is a bust or that he shouldn't be the starter. But Washington Jr. has played too well at every turn since coming to Las Vegas to be getting a mere five carries per game, while Jeanty struggles and doesn't look 100% in 20 rushes per contest.
A 60-40 split should be in order, but if Washington Jr. has the hot hand against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 4, Kubiak needs to ride it, as he promised he would.
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