Getty Josh Jacobs & Davante Adams of the Las Vegas Raiders.
Josh Jacobs’ holdout was handing over the Las Vegas Raiders all of training camp. He’s a team leader and led the NFL in rushing last season so his teammates wanted him back on the field.
Star wide receiver Davante Adams wasn’t shy about his desire to have Jacobs back on the team and he finally got what he wanted when the two sides finally agreed to a restructured one-year contract that will pay the running back up to $12 million in 2023. Adams couldn’t hide his happiness about the news.
“I’m excited about it,” Adams told Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal in an August 27 interview. “I know he’s definitely excited. He got all of the business side out of that way and now it’s time to ball.”
Adams knew the Raiders’ offense couldn’t reach its full potential without Jacobs. He also knows that the running back wasn’t just sitting around during his holdout.
“Obviously, he’s a key and vital part of this offense and so having him around is gonna bring more confidence to the team,” Adams said. “And I know he’s been working too, so he’ll be ready to get it. So we’re definitely all excited.”
#Raiders’ Davante Adams is obviously excited.
Davante Adams Not Concerned With Josh Jacobs Missing Practicing
Josh Jacobs hasn’t been able to practice with the team since last season. He wasn’t part of organized team activities and has missed most of training camp. While that may be an issue for some younger players, Davante Adams doesn’t foresee it being a problem for Jacobs.
“At the end of the day we’re not practicing live, anyway, so obviously he would probably feel better having more,” Adams told Vincent Bonsignore. “But I mean when you’re that type of player and you lock in that way, and it’s not like he’s coming to a new team, he knows the scheme. It’s just getting re-familiar with everything.”
The Raiders have a couple of weeks before their September 10 regular season opener against the Denver Broncos. Adams thinks that’s enough time to get Jacobs back into the swing of things.
“We’ve got plenty of time to keep working with him,” Adams said. “He’s gonna hit that book hard and do what he has to do in practice to make sure he’s ready.”
Josh McDaniels Excited to Get Josh Jacobs Back
The Raiders offense has a lot of potential this season but noting having Josh Jacobs would’ve made it a lot more difficult to have a balanced offensive attack. Head coach Josh McDaniels and general manager Dave Ziegler didn’t believe in him when they took over last season, which is proven by the fact that they declined his fifth-year option.
Now they believe that he is an integral part of the team. McDaniels is very happy to have Jacobs back in the fold.
“I love the player and I love the person, and I’m excited that he’ll be back here soon,” McDaniels said during his August 26 press conference. “He meant a lot to our team last year, and he’s going to mean a lot to our team this year.”
Backup running back Zamir White may get some work early in the season as Jacobs ramps things up but he’ll likely be getting the majority of the carries as the season goes on.