Getty Las Vegas Raiders RB Josh Jacobs.
After an explosive rookie season, it looked like Josh Jacobs was poised to become a superstar for the Las Vegas Raiders. That hasn’t exactly been the case for the running back. He’s had a few solid games but has yet to rush for over 100 yards in a game, which he did five times as a rookie.
The worst performance of his career came this past Sunday when he only rushed for 17 yards on 10 carries against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Jacobs was not happy about his performance.
“I wouldn’t say I put it behind me because I was embarrassed. It was pretty embarrassing for me,” Jacobs said. “Something that I just kind of went and looked at the film, I went and practiced and I went and watched previous games. I was just trying to see where I could improve my game, what can I bring to this team and try to get the guys motivated to be where we want to be. That’s my mindset right now.”
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Offensive Line Issues Hurting Jacobs
In defense of Jacobs, he hasn’t been blessed with the same dominant offensive line he had last season. Trent Brown and Richie Incognito have both missed most of the season and heading into Week 7, the entire starting offensive line missed practice all week. That’s not a recipe for success in the running game.
Jacobs is an excellent running back and he’s going to figure things out. According to him, he’s pretty healthy right now. The Raiders have faced some excellent defenses this season and with the schedule easing up, Jacobs should be able to pick things up. He’s just hitting a bit of a sophomore slump but he’s due for a big game. Everybody knows Jon Gruden wants to run the ball so he’s going to do what he can to get Jacobs going.
Jacobs Is His Own Biggest Critic
A big reason why the Raiders shouldn’t be worried about Jacobs’ slump is the fact that he’s mature beyond his years. He’s made nothing but positive headlines since joining the team. He knows that he’s been struggling and he’s got an idea of what he needs to do better.
“It’s been just the little things on trying to break a big run,” Jacobs said. “We’ve been close on a lot of plays. I’m my hardest critic on myself honestly. I come out every day in practice and nit pick the things I can get better in, especially in a game. Trying to be more patient, trying to hit things, trying not to think so much and go out there and run. That’s been a thing I feel like I’ve been working on.”
Jacobs is going to pick things up eventually. He’s too talented and too hard-working not to. The Raiders’ passing game has opened up a lot this year so if they can get the running game going, they’re going to be hard to stop. It’s just a matter of time before Jacobs has his breakout game of 2020.
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