Raiders GM defends Ashton Jeanty's rookie season: 'There's 10 other people that are out there with him'

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2026-01-08

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Running back Ashton Jeanty didn’t put up the eye-popping numbers expected when the Las Vegas Raiders made him the No. 6 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, but much of that had to do with the surrounding issues.

“His success — I know there’s been a lot of narratives out there that he didn’t have the season that maybe he deserved or you would expect from the sixth overall pick,” general manager John Spytek said Monday, via the team’s official website. “Well, that’s fine, but it’s not just Ashton. There’s 10 other people that are out there with him, and it’s our job to put a great group of guys around him to help him realize his potential.”

Jeanty finished his rookie season with 1,321 scrimmage yards and 10 total touchdowns, breaking Josh Jacobs‘ team record (1,316) for most scrimmage yards by a Raiders rookie. He joined Marcus Allen (14 in 1982) as the only Raiders rookies with 10+ scores.

In 17 games, Jeanty led all rookie running backs with 975 rushing yards on 266 totes — by far the most carries among first-year players — with five TDs. He added 55 catches for 346 yards and another five scores.

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The Raiders offense was a mess around the back, particularly the offensive line, which struggled to open holes. Among running backs with at least 200 carries, Jeanty had just 112 yards before contact, second-fewest in the NFL, with 88.5% of his yards coming after contact, per Next Gen Stats. His 71 missed forced tackles on rushing attempts ranked tied for fourth-most in the NFL with rushing leader James Cook, behind only Jonathan Taylor (93), Christian McCaffrey (91) and Bijan Robinson (81).

If the situation around Jeanty improves under a new coaching staff, his talent will be more evident in 2026.

“I think it was good,” Jeanty said of his rookie campaign. “Obviously there’s still a lot of room for growth, but I think I did pretty good for what I had. There’s some plays I’ve run back and looked at, wished I could’ve capitalized more but that’s just a part of the game. You’re not going to make every single play out there.

“But I’m going to be working this offseason, building off what I’ve done this year and just trying to improve on the little things that I can.”