It’s been a chaotic week for the Raiders as they make big roster moves but roster transactions aren’t the only news coming out of Las Vegas. Last year, the NFL started allowing running backs, wide receivers and tight ends to wear any number between 1 and 49, and any number between 80 and 89. That led to many players across the league changing their numbers.
However, players are financially responsible for any unsold jerseys with their old number. For big-name players, that could cost a pretty penny. That doesn’t look like it’s going to stop Raiders running back Josh Jacobs. The 2019 first-round pick originally raised eyebrows when he issued an apology to the Raiders fan base and just said “you’ll see why soon.”
Ima just going to go ahead and apologize to #RaiderNation you’ll see why soon 😬
This time of year, there are so many trades and surprise roster cuts that it seemed like Jacobs was about to bolt from the team. Luckily, it wasn’t that serious. He revealed that he’s “going back” to his roots.
I’m going back to my roots 😈
Though he hasn’t made anything official yet, it appears that Jacobs is returning to his college jersey number, which was eight. The reason he apologized to fans is that a lot of them have Jacobs’ No. 28 jersey. Looks like the jersey will be outdated this upcoming season.
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Alec Ingold Sign With Dolphins
One of the first surprising moves the Raiders made since head coach Josh McDaniels took over was letting fullback Alec Ingold walk in free agency. He was coming off a major injury last season but was a relentless worker, team captain and beloved teammate. McDaniels decided to sign former New England Patriots fullback Jakob Johnson due to his familiarity with the offensive system.
Fortunately for Ingold, he landed on his feet just fine. The fullback signed a contract with the Miami Dolphins.
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According to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, Ingold is receiving a two-year, $7.5 million contract. That makes him the second-highest-paid fullback in the NFL behind Kyle Juszczyk.
Miami will be a great landing spot for Ingold as new head coach Mike McDaniel is a fan of fullbacks and will have some big plans for the former Raider.
Brandon Bolden Praises McDaniels
There will be a lot of changes for the Raiders under McDaniels but the team shouldn’t expect him to try and be Bill Belichick Jr. He’s much more personable than the legendary coach, per new Raiders running back Brandon Bolden, who spent eight years in New England.
“Josh is a very personal coach. He’s a players coach,” Bolden said during his introductory press conference. “He likes to bring the best out of his players and he likes to challenge his players as well. … It’s more than football to him, he’s a very family-oriented guy. That’s how he was raised and that’s the way he coaches.
“I love Josh. We’ve bumped heads a few times, but like I said, it’s family. You bump heads then you shake hands and get it over with and we’re back for the same common goal.”
McDaniels is replacing a beloved coach in Rich Bisaccia so coming in and trying to act like the infamously cold Belichick could be a mistake. So far, it sounds the like coach will have a much different approach.
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Josh Jacobs Issues Apology to Raiders Fans for Apparent Big Change