Getty Free agent RB Leonard Fournette at the Oakland Coliseum.
For whatever reason, the Jacksonville Jaguars aren’t doing a great job of holding on to homegrown talent. They had to trade Pro Bowl pass-rusher Yannick Ngakoue after a prolonged holdout and also traded star cornerback Jalen Ramsey during the 2019 season. That’s not to mention the fact that they traded All-Pro defensive tackle to the Baltimore Ravens for just a fifth-round pick.
The firesale is on and former fourth overall pick Leonard Fournette is the latest casualty. He was barely heading into his fourth season and was coming off a year where he rushed for 1,152 rush yards, which was good for seventh-best in the NFL. It’s becoming abundantly clear that the Jaguars have entered a full-blown rebuild. They’ve accumulated a ton of draft capital and have to be the favorites to get the number one overall pick in 2021.
In Fournette’s case, there was a reason he was a top-5 draft pick. He hasn’t been as good as was expected of him but to say he deserved to get cut after three seasons is absurd. He’s going to find new life on a different team and should be able to salvage his career.
Raiders Would Be Interesting Fit for Fournette
Despite the fact that Fournette was let go by the team that drafted him, there’s still a chance he could start for a number of teams. However, it’s more likely he goes to a team to serve as a backup. The Raiders would present a very interesting fit.
Their starting spot is locked up after Josh Jacobs proved to be a stud as a rookie. The team just released power running back Rod Smith which leaves the Raiders with several running backs on the roster who all have similar skill sets. Fournette would be the perfect change of pace back to complement Jacobs. He wouldn’t really affect Jalen Richard’s game as he’s pretty much just a receiver out of the backfield these days.
Jacobs is a stud and could be considered a top-five running back after this season. That said, he’s dealt with injuries throughout his time in the NFL and in college. Fournette is more than capable of taking on a bigger workload should Jacobs get injured. It isn’t a necessary move for the Raiders to make but it wouldn’t be a bad move at all.
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Mike Mayock Was Very High on Fournette
Thanks to the fact that general manager Mike Mayock used to be a draft analyst, we know how he feels about a lot of players across the NFL. Back in 2017, he was really high on Fournette. In fact, he had him ranked as the top running back in that class over Christian McCaffrey.
Here’s what Mayock had to say about Fournette after the 2017 NFL Combine, per NFL.com:
I don’t think (the weight) really matters in all honesty. I’d still to like to know what you’re getting, weight-wise and where you think he’s gonna be. But at the end of the day, his tape is so good and he’s such a special athlete that it’s not going to matter.
Big-time speed at 240 pounds. The power. He runs with an attitude. He’s a top-10 running back right there. … I think it was fair to have the conversation about the 28 inches, but the flip side to it is he ran 4.51 and looked really good in the drills.
There hasn’t been any rumored interest in Fournette on the Raiders’ part but it’s hard to imagine they aren’t at least considering it.
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