ashton jeanty
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Las Vegas Raiders RB Ashton Jeanty.
The Las Vegas Raiders have already had a chaotic offseason, but luckily, the players under contract don’t have to deal with too much of that fallout. One player who has to be excited about how the offseason has played out is running back Ashton Jeanty.
Not only does he have a new head coach who is known for running the ball in Klint Kubiak, but the team added arguably the best run blocking center in the NFL in Tyler Linderbaum.
That’s not the only exciting news Jeanty has gotten this offseason. Recently, the Fanatics Flag Football Classic, which was supposed to take place in Saudi Arabia, has now been moved to Los Angeles, California.
With the game moving to the States, some other players have been added to the classic, per Sports Business Journal. Jeanty was announced as one of the new additions to the roster, alongside Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver DeVonta Smith, New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara and more.
It’ll be interesting to see how Jeanty does at flag football. His greatest superpower is that he’s just really hard to tackle, but defenders won’t have to worry about tackling him. This will be a chance for him to put his speed and elusiveness on display.
Jeanty Has to Be Happy Maxx Crosby Is Staying
Jeanty likely isn’t staying super up to date on everything the Raiders are doing this offseason, but there’s no doubt he heard about the trade drama surrounding Maxx Crosby.
The team agreed to trade him to the Baltimore Ravens, only for them to pull the offer off the table at the last minute. Prior to that trade drama, Jeanty made it clear that he was hoping Crosby would stay with the organization.
“I mean, it’s very important,” Jeanty told Heavy Sports when asked about Crosby during Super Bowl week. “Obviously, he’s been a staple of the organization for a long time. He’s an amazing player and person. I don’t know anything behind the talks or anything like that. But obviously, I don’t control any of that.”
Jeanty Set to Have Huge Season
There was a ton of hype around Jeanty coming into the NFL, and while he showed some good flashes, he didn’t have the big season many expected from him. He was an unstoppable force in college, but he only averaged 3.7 yards per carry as a rookie.
Things should be much different for him this season. Kubiak is a coach who wants to run the ball early and often. He likely hasn’t worked with a running back with the raw talent that Jeanty has. He has to have big plans for how he plans to use him.
The biggest problem Jeanty faced last season was that the Raiders’ offensive line was terrible. They couldn’t open very many running lanes for him. Just adding Linderbaum already makes Jeanty’s life easier, and the Raiders should continue upgrading the offensive line.
Plus, the Raiders should have a new quarterback, which could also help Jeanty. He’s a very important player for Las Vegas, so if he can be the player the team thought he was coming into the draft, the offense has a chance to surprise a lot of people next season.