Did it feel like the Raiders didn’t have an effective plan to run the ball over the last couple of seasons?
From the outside it felt that way, and Raiders’ flagship radio host ‘JT the Brick’ talked this week about the failed efforts of the previous coaching staff(s) in Las Vegas to run the ball.
“What is going to be the scheme for Ashton Jeanty to run free and be the Offensive Rookie of the Year?” JT asked on his Raider Nation Radio show.
“They’re going to have to have a scheme in place. It’s not [just] hand the ball up the middle. We did that for too long around here. We just ran the ball into the pile. I hated it. I had to interview the coaches. I had to talk about this. They just run it into the pile, run it into the pile. No more. We’re done.”
JT didn’t say which coaching staffs he was referring to, but the Raiders were ranked among the bottom 3 teams in the league in rushing yards per game in each of the last two years.
The running game under Antonio Pierce in 2024 was among the worst efforts in franchise history from an execution standpoint, and former OC Luke Getsy has taken a lot of criticism for the team’s failure to run the ball a year ago.
JT listed the newest running scheme under new offensive coordinator Chip Kelly as one of the most important details the Raiders need to figure out going into the 2025 season.
“You just can’t hand the ball off to this kid from Boise and expect him to find the hole. It does not work with this offensive line. This offensive line is not good enough yet,” JT said. “They got a couple of players, Kolton Miller and Jackson Powers-Johnson, who have Pro Bowl abilities. Everybody else has got to prove that they can make the team and play. There’s some experienced players and some young players. What will be the scheme?
“How are they going to run Ashton outside? Are they going to run him in between the tackles? You see what I’m getting at? That has to be defined in camp and in preseason. Not in the games.”
By all accounts, Kelly is one of the best running-game coordinators in football, but that was supposed to be Getsy’s area of expertise a year ago.
There are high expectations for Kelly in year one and some of that comes with being the highest-paid offensive coordinator in the league.
With Kelly’s resume and the addition of Ashton Jeanty, there won’t be many viable excuses for a running game in Las Vegas that doesn’t rank in the top half of the league. For $6 million a year, an above average running game ought to be the least Kelly is able to deliver in his first year with the Raiders.
x: @raidersbeat
JT the d!ck is an absolute moron. AP wanted Kingsbury to run the offense but Mark wouldn’t spend the money. AP wanted to keep Jacobs but Telesco overruled him(1 of 2 mistakes Tom made).
We didn’t have Mayer. Kolton was hurt coming back, and our next best OL was a rookie.
None of the running backs we had last year may not make the roster. Even Spytek who usually goes line drafted Jeanty over Membou. Obviously he thinks the running back was the issue.
I hope Chip Kelly can do more w/the offense but Mark setup AP for failure. Naturally Mark has to send his shill out to attack the previous staff. The vanity of this loser.
While all of that is true, it is also true that they looked poorly coached on the offensive line last year. There is a reason the O line coach got fired along with Getsy. They were making too many mistakes on the field that are clearly reflective of bad coaching. Missing basic combo blocks, for example.
I didn’t want Getsy either. But it was obvious to placate Devante, another Patriot west screwup, but what was left to choose from after mark said no?
Wow. I thought the stupidity at Silver and Black Pride was bad. Here’s a comment on things that only a blind deaf polo afficianado could make about the workings of the NFL. Kingsbury is coaching THE BEST NEW QB IN ALL OF FOOTBALL! Does anybody not named Raiderro think that’s a fluke coincidence? Does anyone other than Raiderro think that Kingsbury could be lured to coaching Gardner Minshew for money? REALLY? Hating on Davis is well stupid. Because it’s a waste of time. Thinking up even more ridiculous stupidity to throw at Davis is well … moronic. This dipped in excrement theory proves it. If you hate the owner, you hate the team. Find another.
I hope you are either JT or Mark’s lackey cuz your post is wee tarded like the Raiders owner.
Point you’re missing is Kliff didn’t get the chance to choose cuz Mark already said no. Redskins also didn’t have Daniel’s, you know the guy Tom/AP wanted to trade up for , @ the time he took the Redskins job. Money can sway people, see Chip Kelly. Now maybe QB sways you but Mark screwed that up when he fired the coach the players played for to get the worst HC of all time in here. So thanks for that McDaniels move Mark, another genius decision.
I’m a Raiders fan cuz of Al & what he created. His son is entitled loser who has never done jack crap in his miserable life except inherit the best brand in pro sports.
Mark has done nothing but lose & he never prepared for this job, and yet you think I can only be a fan if I support him? Freaking laughable! I guess I wasn’t a real Dodgers fan when McCourt was running things.
Speaking of my baseball team. You know what their genius owners did when they took over? They identified the best talent evaluator in the game & paid him accordingly. Mark couldn’t dream of having brains like that.
Useless article, period. Why? because you can’t redo yesterday. Al Davis said, “The greatness of the Raiders is their future.” With that said, the success, past and future, should be a mix of youth and veterans, that’s how Al did it and he produced the winningest team in ALL of sports, over basketball, hockey and baseball. It took Kansas City 50 years before they won their second championship. It is now 52 years and counting for the Raiders since they won their last championship. The only way to return to their glory days is for Raiders scouts to find diamonds in the ruff ie. find small school players who other teams reject. Art Shell came from Townson, Gene Upshaw came from Texas A&M, Walter Payton came from Jackson State, Howie Long came from Villanova, Deacon Jones first went to Mississippi Valley State before transferring to South Carolina State, Marshall Faulk went to San Diego State, Charles Haley went to James Madison University, Julian Edleman went to Kent State (undrafted), John Randle went to Trinity Valley
and Texas A&I (undrafted), Puka Naccua of BYU was a 5th round draft pick, Antonio Brown went to Central Michigan, Max Crosby, a 4th round pick, went to Eastern Michigan and the list goes on.