Ashton Jeanty will wear no. 2 for the Raiders this year, but his college number at Boise State didn’t come cheap in the NFL.
Daniel Carlson had worn no. 2 for the Raiders since he joined the team in 2018, and Carlson is one of the premier kickers in the league.
Jeanty told Up and Adams host Kay Adams that he reached out to Carlson soon after being drafted by the Raiders and made an offer for the no. 2 jersey.
“I called him and I’m like, ‘I’m trying to get that No. 2. I’m willing to negotiate whatever you’re thinking,'” Jeanty told Adams. “I gave him what I was thinking first, then he came back and I’m like, ‘I got to do it. I got to drop that little bag for No. 2.”
As for the amount Jeanty paid, he wouldn’t disclose the exact figure, but he did offer a strong hint.
“You could buy a nice Mercedez GLE,” Jeanty said.
For those wondering, that means Jeanty might have paid close to six figures for the no. 2 jersey in Silver & Black.
According to Mercedez, their GLE model runs anywhere from $61,000 to a little over $130,000 and based on similar deals, $100k seems to be the market price for jersey number swaps.
As for why the number meant so much to Jeanty, he said no. 2 has significance beyond the fact that he wore it in college.
“I’ve worn it the majority of my career,” Jeanty said. “It’s the day greatness was born, the day I was born. December 2. It’s a family number. All my family members who played sports, they wore No. 2.”
Jeanty is already a fan favorite among Raider fans and for anyone unhappy with the pick, it’s good to know there were at least two teams trying hard to move ahead of the Raiders to get Jeanty.
The Chicago Bears interest in Jeanty was reported a few days after the draft and it’s been passed along by ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler that the Denver Broncos were another team calling around, looking to trade up to a position where they could take Jeanty.
”The Broncos considered moving up in the first round for running back Ashton Jeanty. They called around to teams picking in the top 10. But the price simply would have been ‘too heavy’ for Denver’s liking, per a source,” Fowler reported two weeks ago. “And the team eyeing Jeanty (the Raiders at No. 6) was a division rival, thus not a likely trade partner.”
Ultimately, the Broncos were not able to keep Jeanty from ending up in Las Vegas, and the Raiders should get some satisfaction knowing they closed the door on any opportunity the Broncos had at bringing the best running back in the draft to Denver.
x: @raidersbeat
Dude, played for Boise State. A mass his statistics in a very weak competition division. Popping off about his stance to Kelly. Now this number thing.
This guy needs to STFU and learn how to play against competition that he’s never even seen before.
This guy never should’ve been a number six pick.
The only running back in the NFL making more money than him is Saquon Barkley. And this guy hasn’t even played down yet.
I hope he proves me wrong.
He will.