The Raiders made a lot of mock drafts look good when they selected Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty with the sixth overall pick, but not every draft analyst is immediately raving about the pick.
ESPN’s Dan Orlovsky said he loves Jeanty but doesn’t think the Heisman runner up is in the best situation to thrive behind the offensive line in Las Vegas.
“Here’s my thing with Jeanty to the Raiders. The Raiders averaged 3.4 yards per carry last year. That’s the worst for a team since 1996,” Orlovsky said.
“It wasn’t all just on the backs, so while [Jeanty] is a very good player, putting him behind still a very poor offensive line… minimizes his impact. So you’re sitting there going ‘You better fix your offensive line in Las Vegas very fast before you’ll ever get to see how good of a back he really is.”
The Vegas offensive line might be an average group by NFL standards, but the impact of former offensive coordinator Luke Getsy shouldn’t be overlooked.
The Raiders’ running game improved when Getsy was fired as his impact on the offensive line was as significant as any position group on the team.
“The hiring of Luke Getsy and all of that offensive stuff totally ruined [the Raiders] 2024 season,” Sports Illustrated’s Hondo Carpenter said in December. “[It was] a horrible decision. And now you see Aiden come back after he’s gone five weeks, and bam, he’s in and looking better than old Aiden. Go back and watch what he did last year on Christmas Day compared to what he did on Black Friday. He doesn’t even look like the same quarterback.”
The fact that the Raiders chose Jeanty with so many outstanding running backs in this year’s draft pool says a lot about how they perceive his potential.
GM John Spytek could have taken a top offensive lineman with the no. 6 pick and followed up with a starting caliber running back in the second round. The Raiders didn’t go that route, so now let’s see what their plan is on for day 2… or could they potentially trade back into the first round?
x: @raidersbeat
Who cares what orovilleowsky says, we have Ashton jeanty go get a pail of flat rocks and skip them on the nearest lake or water source you have… who cares. Deal with it ….. for the next 10 years!
You’re a clown. A great RB makes the O Line instantly better. That’s a loser mentality! Let’s not draft the BPOB because we suck is a terrible way to run a Franchise. Glad Pete is here
Orlovsky is a D-bag, who couldn’t even play the game! Let’s go Raiders! 🏴☠️
Getsy sucked, Miller was coming back from injury. Last 6 games the oline was much better. Go Raiders
I wanted Membou but you can’t be mad at this pick. If it was Kelvin Banks I would’ve been upset.
I’m just hoping that there are not any comparisons here to Trent Richardson. I really wanted us to trade back. I think AJ is now the second highest paid RB in the league. Will the step up in competition, wich is significant, show this was a big mistake?
Whoops, 12th. Right there with Henry.