Raiders may have a chance at doing what they haven’t done in decades now that they drafted the perfect rookie for the job
The Las Vegas Raiders could have a shot at having one of the best running back duos in the league, and maybe in their franchise’s history.
The Las Vegas Raiders have the chance to do something special. We all know how good Ashton Jeanty is, but adding Mike Washington Jr., the rookie running back, could actually make him better. Not only that, the Raiders could end up having an elite RB duo.
In the franchise’s history, there are some really, really good RBs. But there’s not a ton of elite duos. There have been elite duos on paper, but the numbers weren’t quite elite. There have been elite duos in the numbers, but the team was still a bad football team. In 2026, they could have two RBs with over 600 rushing yards. That’s how good the rookie RB is.
Using Stathead, I looked up every single time the Raiders had two running backs with at least 600 rushing yards. In my opinion, if your backup RB has 600 rushing yards, he’s considered an elite backup RB.
That happened eight times in franchise history, most recently in 2010 with Darren McFadden and Michael Bush. That team only won eight games. Other notable seasons that meet these criteria are 1977 and 1973, when the Raiders had three rushers with over 600 yards.
I surveyed some of the fan base and asked what they would consider an elite RB season in terms of total rush yards, and I got a variety of answers. It seems like most of the fan base feels that 1,600-2,000 total rushing yards between the two would be considered an elite RB duo in 2026. The Raiders haven’t gotten anywhere close to 2000 in almost 50 years.
In 77’, Mark Van Eeghan and Clarence Davis combined for 2,060 rushing yards and 12 rushing touchdowns. The Raiders went 11-3. I believe Vegas can get close to that in 2026, but maybe 1,200 from Jeanty, and 600 from Washington.
Mike Washington and Ashton Jeanty have what it takes to be an elite RB duo
Washington is 6’1, 223 pounds, and has 33-inch arms. He’s huge, massive some would say, but does not move that way at all. The way he moves, you’d think he’s smaller.
Washington ran a 4.33 40-yard dash, a 10-yard split of 1.51 seconds, a vertical jump of 39’’, and a broad jump of 10’ 8’’. Washington had a RAS score of 10.00, which is a perfect score. It’s safe to say he’s a beast. Last season, he had just over 1,000 rushing yards and eight rushing touchdowns in an offense in which the quarterback, Taylen Green, also ran frequently.
His being on the team alone helps Jeanty. It takes a workload off Jeanty’s shoulders that he had last year, one that no other RB had.
Jeanty played as a rookie on the league’s lowest-ranked offense and still finished just under 1,000 rushing yards. He ranked 7th in total carries with 266, but only 18th in total rushing yards.
Notable seasons with a good RB duo for the Raiders
- 2011 (McFadden, Bush)
- 2010 (McFadden, Bush)
- 1999 (Napoleon Kaufman, Tyrone Wheatley)
- 1980 (Kenny King, Mark Van Eeghen)
- 1978 (Mark Van Eeghan, Arthur Whittington)
- 1977 (Mark Van Eeghen, Clarence Davis)
- 1972 (Marv Hubbard, Charlie Smith)
780 of his 975 rushing yards came after contact, and he led the league with 43 broken tackles. Jeanty handled a significant workload as a rookie. Notably, he accumulated 750 carries in three years at Boise State and over 1,000 in four years overall at the college level.
Transitioning to the NFL, where the physical demands and season length are greater, maintaining such a workload is especially challenging for running backs. Given the typically brief careers for the position, it is analytically prudent for Kubiak to reduce Jeanty’s workload. Washington can be that perfect backup and 1-2 punch to Jeanty, similar to what Kubiak had with Kenneth Walker and Zach Charbonnet.
