While having self confidence is never a bad thing, in the NFL it can quickly cross the line to self delusion.
Such was the case of Las Vegas Raiders rookie running back Ashton Jeanty ahead of a Week 3 road game against the Washington Commanders, who might just find the motivation they need in the words of the 2025 first round pick.
Through his first 2 games, Jeanty has been one of the NFL’s least productive featured running backs with 30 carries for 81 yards and 1 touchdown. That’s a paltry 2.7 yards per carry — the type of numbers that usually get players benched.
For Jeanty, who signed a 4-year, $36 million rookie contract, he thinks it should mean more touches.
“I don’t think you draft a guy like me to not give me carries and touches,” Jeanty said on September 17. “I’m ready for the responsibility. Like I said, it’s going to start with me in the run game and I’ve got to continue to get better.”
Jeanty, the No. 6 overall pick, might still be gassed up from rushing for 2,601 yards and 29 touchdowns for Boise State as he sliced and diced his way through the Mountain West Conference — a far cry from the AFC West Division.
Asking for more carries ahead of facing the Commanders could easily be interpreted as a direct challenge to a pair of NFL All-Pro linebackers in Bobby Wagner and Frankie Luvu.
If that’s truly the case, Jeanty might come to regret what he wished for.
Jeanty Looked ‘Small’ Compared To NFL Defenses
Longtime podcast host Bill Simmons may have said what everyone was thinking about Jeanty, 5-foot-8 and 211 pounds, after watching him play in a Week 2 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers in which Jeanty had 11 carries for 43 yards.
“I’m going to whisper this because it’s not a take,” Simmons said on “The Bill Simmons Podcast” on September 16. Jeanty seemed small (against the Chargers in Week 2). And I know that part of the package and he’s a little guy, and we’ve seen a lot of little guys succeed, but the Chargers have a big, physical defense, and it was notable. I don’t know … I’m not going to overreact yet.”
History Of Making Wild Claims About Talent
Jeanty’s call for more carries against the Commanders isn’t the first time he’s said something that seems out of pocket.
Before the NFL draft, he compared himself to reigning NFL Offensive Player of the Year and Super Bowl champion running back Saquon Barkley, who became just the ninth player in NFL history to rush for over 2,000 yards in a single season in 2024.
“Most people, they watched the Eagles win the Super Bowl a couple of months ago, they watched Saquon run through everyone in the playoffs, and they thought to themselves, This is amazing,” Jeanty wrote in an article for The Players Tribune on April 16. “I watched it and I thought something different. I thought, That can be me.“
To be fair, there are some who think Jeanty does possess that kind of upside.
In his pre-draft evaluation, NFL draft analyst Lance Zierlein said Jeanty has “Future NFL All-Pro talent” and compared him to Pro Football Hall of Fame running back LaDainian Tomlinson.
$36 Million ‘Future NFL All-Pro’ Issues Direct Challenge to Commanders