A week ago, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported that Raiders’ running back Ashton Jeanty was dealing with a plantar fasciitis flare up, and while Jeanty looked a little better on Sunday, he still didn’t look to be at 100 percent against the Bills.
Jeanty had 10 carries on Sunday for 22 yards and only two touches after halftime compared to Mike Washington Jr.’s six.
There were at least two occasions against the Bills where Jeanty was in obvious pain after carries, and it’s starting to feel like the best decision for Jeanty’s season might be to shut him down for a week or two.
Entering Sunday’s game, the Bills were no. 30 in the league at defending the run, and one doctor following Jeanty’s situation thinks it’s time for the Raiders to get serious about resting their star running back.
Time for the Raiders to save Jeanty from himself?
Plantar fasciitis injuries only tend to improve with rest and Jeanty barely skipped a beat this week according to the team’s injury reports.
Lincoln Kennedy has been discussing Jeanty’s health for a few weeks, and he said last week he thinks the coaching staff needs to protect Jeanty from himself.
“It’s almost like being a parent to your child when you have to step in and do what’s right for your child. When you have to sit there and say, ‘You know what? You have to shut it down. You can’t go,’” Kennedy said on the Locked on Raiders Squad Show.
“It’s one of those instances that I think that’s coming along the line where a parent has to step in and say, ‘You know what? You’re just not shutting down for this week. Let’s get you to the next week.’ I think that’s what we’re facing in all honesty. Look, for Kubiak, it’s a matter of how do you manage your team versus what’s right for your kid.”
Nothing about Sunday’s performance against the Bills would suggest Jeanty is back to full strength, so it seems from the outside like the Raiders need to trust their eyes and give Jeanty some time to get his lower body back to full strength.
Kubiak lobbied Mike Washington Jr. in the draft
We know Klint Kubiak is high on Jeanty’s backup, so the decision to give more carries to Mike Washington Jr. shouldn’t come as a major disappointment for the head coach.
Back in September, GM John Spytek said it was Kubiak who was pounding the table to draft Washington in the fourth round – a player the team reportedly had a second-round grade on.
“Klint deserves a lot of credit for drafting Mike Washington,” Spytek told members of the media before the regular season opener. “He stood on the table for that at the start of Day 3, and this is the perfect scheme fit.”
x: @raidersbeat
