Jeanty’s Slide Continues As Receiving Numbers Turn Negative

The Las Vegas Raiders were dominated by the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday, and their lead running back isn’t helping. Ashton Jeanty took the majority of the snaps at running back, and he had an historically bad day in his role as a receiver. 

Jeanty finished with five catches for -5 yards in the Raiders 38-17 loss, as quarterback Kirk Cousins threw a total of seven passes to Jeanty, according to a report from Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk. 

Smith also documented the results in detail:  incomplete, 3 yards, 3 yards, incomplete, -3 yards, -7 yards, -1 yard.

The only player who has ever done worse was Jamie Caleb of the 1960 Cleveland Browns, who had the same number of catches for -18 yards. Caleb finished his career with seven catches for -26 yards, so he was clearly a blip on the radar in NFL history. 

Jeanty’s status, meanwhile, is sinking fast. He’s gone from being a potentially great running back and one of those guys who never wants to come out of a game, according to his coach, Klint Kubiak, to a player who’s now “part of the mix.” 

He was supplanted in the lineup by running back Mike Washington Jr. against the New York Jets last Sunday, but the rookie didn’t fare any better against the 49ers. Washington had six carries for -3 yards, and Jeanty and the rookie combined for 17 yards on 17 touches. 

The Raiders now have a total of 642 rushing yards on 222 attempts, per Smith, with an average of 2.89 yards per carry. Las Vegas is the only team averaging under three yards a carry, and that’s despite the Raiders working to solve this problem for weeks. 

Quarterback Kirk Cousins has been carrying the offense, but the burden broke him against the Niners. Cousins had three interceptions in the second half against San Francisco, and tight ends Mike Mayer and Brock Bowers both lost fumbles. 

It’s unclear how any of this gets better with regard to Jeanty, as this may simply be who the Raiders are this season. They’re not in a position to be in an advantageous trade, and Sunday’s loss raises legitimate questions about whether they should trade off some assets for draft capital. 

Kubiak probably won’t allow GM John Spytek to do that given that the Raiders are technically “in the hunt” for a playoff berth, but that could change by the trade deadline on Tuesday.