Ashton Jeanty to the Raiders: Star Player Set to Land in Las Vegas in Surprising Trade Move
Ashton Jeanty has been the prospect most linked to the Las Vegas Raiders before the upcoming NFL draft. For good reason, it makes sense for their short-term goals next season and long-term goals for the face of the franchise.
The Raiders have a possibility to make a quick turnaround in their division and go from last place to a playoff spot. Jeanty would go a long way toward making that a reality. Though they still lack a franchise quarterback, Jeanty could headline their offense alongside Brock Bowers.
This would give the team a direction to head in, something they’ve lacked the past couple of years as they’ve felt aimless. With Jeanty, they could lean on their revamped ground game, and they could be a gritty team with the mentality that they’ll run through teams’ chests.
Though Jeanty to the Raiders makes sense now, there was a time when it wasn’t so popular. Eric Edholm, a lead draft writer for the NFL, published his second iteration of a mock draft, where he looks back on when he was called out for linking the two together months ago.
“In my first mock a couple months ago, I sent Jeanty to the Raiders … and had people laughing at me on X. Now, projecting Jeanty to the Raiders is all the rage. Just remember who first sent you. With Geno Smith, Brock Bowers and Jeanty, the offensive identity would start taking shape — even if the WR room still needs major help”, said Edholm.
They’d be missing out on an explosive wide receiver, but they could convince themselves they have players already on their roster that, with more time, could develop into legitimate options for them. Players like Tre Tucker or Kyle Phillips have the possibility of continuing to develop; they don’t have that luxury in the running back room.
They have young running backs like Zamir White or Sincere McCormick, but if they were confident in these players, they wouldn’t have signed Raheem Mostert in free agency. Besides, they likely won’t get another opportunity to draft a generational prospect such as Jeanty; they don’t want to pass it up.
