The Las Vegas Raiders once again failed to establish the run in Sunday's blowout loss to the San Francisco 49ers. They were defeated 38-17 in Week 9, with struggling sophomore Ashton Jeanty rushing for 25 yards on just six attempts. Despite the ongoing struggles, former Pro Bowl Raider Marcel Reece believes Jeanty will eventually turn the corner.
“What’s missing out of those carries is the explosive runs, right? Because now all of a sudden you get explosive runs, and that’s how that average moves up ," Reece said. "When they start to get those explosive runs, that’s when you’re going to start to see the success in the stats, because the stats don’t tell the story.”
Raiders fans wondered how head coach Klint Kubiak would address the division of
labor in Sunday's matchup versus the 49ers. Last weekend, rookie Mike Washington Jr. served as the primary back. That wasn't totally the case in Week 9, with Washington matching Jeanty's six carries, but he was ineffective, producing -3 yards.
Reece sees Washington as Jeanty's potential counterpart.
“I know Ashton Jeanty is a good running back," Reece continued. "Now he has a counterpart, Mike Washington, that is absolutely explosive and is going to be a special back in this league. Klint Kubiak is going to figure it out. Figure out what Ashton is great at, what Mike is great at, and allow the two of them to be a two-headed monster.”
Coach Kubiak is attempting to sort through the Raiders' run-game struggles. He oversaw an excellent rushing attack as the offensive coordinator of the Super Bowl-winning Seattle Seahawks last season. That inspires confidence that Kubiak will figure it out eventually.
“He [Jeanty] has a new run game, new run scheme, so it takes time," Reece concluded. "I like to say that when you’re on the defensive end of the ball, that it’s like throwing lighter fluid on top of a fire. When you’re on the offensive side, you’re starting a fire with wood sticks, right? It takes time, but once it gets roaring, it’s sustainable and it’s good.”
The Raiders need to start finding (and then sustaining) some ground-game success soon.
This article originally appeared on Raiders Wire: Ex-Raider Marcel Reece: RB Ashton Jeanty is closer than you think
