The Las Vegas Raiders had the worst rushing attack in the NFL last season under head coach Antonio Pierce and offensive coordinator Luke Getsy. The running back tandem of Zamir White and Alexander Mattison was not able to get anything done, so the team made changes this offseason.
Mattison was not brought back in free agency, and the team went out and signed veteran running back Raheem Mostert on a cheap deal. Mostert was a Pro Bowler in 2023 after he led the NFL in rushing touchdowns, and he has a relationship with offensive coordinator Chip Kelly as well.
Of course, the team added Ashton Jeanty into the mix with the No. 6 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, but the expectation was that Mostert would be backing him up. Instead, White gained some momentum with the new regime, so he and Mostert were expected to split snaps behind Jeanty.
Raheem Mostert is a healthy scratch in Week 1 against Patriots
On Sunday, the Raiders open up the 2025 NFL season on the road against the New England Patriots. The team announced its inactives list for Week 1 just over an hour before the game, and Mostert is surprisingly a healthy scratch.
This is an interesting choice, considering Mostert is a solid veteran player, and the decision has baffled Raider Nation. Now, the team will roll into their first game with just Jeanty, Zamir White and Dylan Laube in the backfield.
Jeanty has been hyped up about as much as a rookie can be, but this is throwing a lot of eggs into one basket for his NFL debut. Perhaps the team foresees a big role for White as well, but this would be upsetting to the fan base after he wildly underperformed last year.
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To make things even more confusing, the Raiders should have a run-heavy offense in Week 1 due to the inclement weather in New England. One would think that having more running backs available would be a benefit, but Pete Carroll and Co. seem to think otherwise.
The rest of the inactive list includes veteran defensive tackle Leki Fotu, rookies J.J. Pegues, Caleb Rogers and Charles Grant, as well as recent waiver wire additions Tristin McCollum and Brennan Jackson.
Alex Bachman and Terrell Edmunds were also elevated from the practice squad for Sunday's game. It appears that Justin Shorter, who was signed from the practice squad just days ago, will also be active in Week 1. Hopefully, the decicison to bench Mostert does not come back to bite the Raiders.