The Las Vegas Raiders are yearning for their second win of the 2025 National Football League season against the Chicago Bears in Week 4.
Las Vegas beat the new-look New England Patriots 20-13 in Week 1 after a dominant debut performance from quarterback Geno Smith. Smith threw for 362 yards, a touchdown and an interception.
In that game, though, rookie sensation running back Ashton Jeanty was held to just 38 yards on 19 carries. He did find the end zone for his first career touchdown, but his day was far from efficient.
Jeanty has rushed for just 144 yards on 47 carries. Fans know he is ultra-talented, and so does head coach Pete Carroll, who admits the team would like to get him more opportunities.
“We've just got to keep bringing him along,” Carroll said Saturday. “You could see he's still learning. He goes the wrong way on a play, there's a problem on a protection one time. Physically, he's doing really well. Give him the ball and let him run, it looks good. He started really well, had an opportunity to have a good night, and he will. We're still breaking him in. For all the obvious reasons, he'll be a big factor for us, certainly.”
The real problem for Jeanty isn’t his skill, it’s his offensive line. The offensive line hasn’t done a great job of protecting the quarterback or generating running lanes for Jeanty to break through.
According to ESPN’s Ryan McFadden, Jeanty has been hit at or behind the line of scrimmage on 57 percent (27 of 47) of his rushing attempts this season.
Bleacher Report’s Brad Gagnon reiterated that the offensive line struggles will be the Raiders’ biggest problem going into Week 4.
“Las Vegas was again manhandled in the trenches all day in a Week 3 loss to the Commanders,” Gagnon wrote Friday. “It's averaging just 3.1 yards per carry, and only the Titans have taken more sacks than the 12 the Raiders have surrendered through three weeks.
“Geno Smith has had his share of issues beyond the line, but they're just not getting enough from anybody not named Kolton Miller.
“There's a decent amount of talent on this offense, including along the line. That said, the Raiders need a lot of guys to turn it around quickly to stick around in the AFC West.”
The Bears defense is heavily wounded, missing top cornerback Jaylon Johnson (core), defensive back Kyler Gordon (hamstring) and linebacker T.J. Edwards (hamstring). However, this unit is hungry to step up after allowing 93 points through three weeks, including 52 against the Detroit Lions in Week 2.