LAS VEGAS — An ominous silence fell over Raiders practice Sunday after running back Ashton Jeanty went down with an apparent leg injury.
Jeanty was unable to put any weight on the injured leg as he was helped from the field, while teammates stood nearby in stunned silence.
The Raiders did not provide an immediate update on Jeanty’s condition or the nature of the injury. But the scene — and the reaction from those around him, which included the entire team taking a knee in prayer — made it clear this was not being treated like an ordinary training-camp setback.
Jeanty is expected to be one of the centerpieces of the Raiders’ offense this season and a foundational piece of their rebuilding roster. Losing him for any significant time would be a devastating blow with the season opener against the Dolphins less than three weeks away.
The Raiders added some insurance to their backfield when they selected Arkansas running back Mike Washington Jr. in the fourth round of this year’s draft. Washington has been one of the pleasant surprises of training camp and the preseason, displaying an impressive combination of size, speed and explosiveness.
Washington isn’t Jeanty, and it would be unfair to expect the rookie to simply replace one of the NFL’s most talented running backs. But his emergence gives the Raiders a promising option should Jeanty be forced to miss time.
For now, the Raiders can only wait for additional testing and hope the injury looked worse than it actually was.
The potential loss is especially concerning given what the Raiders expected Jeanty to become in his second season.
Las Vegas selected the former Boise State star with the sixth overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft after one of the most productive seasons by a running back in college football history. Jeanty rushed for 2,601 yards and 29 touchdowns in 2024, finished second in the Heisman Trophy voting and ended his Boise State career as the school’s all-time leading rusher with 4,769 yards. His 2024 rushing total was second only to Barry Sanders’ 2,628 yards in 1988 in major-college history.
Jeanty showed flashes of that ability during his rookie season, rushing for 975 yards and five touchdowns while adding 55 receptions for 346 yards and five more scores. But his 3.7 yards per carry also reflected the difficulties of playing behind an offensive line that struggled to consistently create room for him.
The Raiders entered this season believing those circumstances had changed. With an upgraded offensive line and Klint Kubiak installing a run-oriented system designed to create movement, favorable angles and cutback opportunities, there was considerable hope Jeanty would take a significant second-year leap. The expectation was that better blocking and a system more suited to his vision, balance and explosiveness would unleash the version of Jeanty who dominated at Boise State.
That is what made the scene at Sunday’s practice – Jeanty unable to put weight on his leg as the rest of the team fell momentarily silent – feel especially ominous.
