Ashton Jeanty, Carroll want the same thing for Raiders’ hyped rookie after frustrating start

Las Vegas rookie Ashton Jeanty, the Raiders’ No. 6 overall pick, is off to a slow start. He has 81 rushing yards on 30 carries and just three receiving yards through Las Vegas’ 1-1 start to the season. Jeanty said he has heard from coach Pete Carroll and quarterback Geno Smith that the team should feed him more, and he indicated he is ready for the responsibility. 'I don’t think you draft a guy like me to not give me carries and touches, I’m ready for the responsibility, and like I said, it’s going to start with me and gotta continue to get better.' 'There’s a learning curve to the NFL for every single rookie. It’s really rare that a guy comes in and is just flat-out balling, so I’m not feeling no type of way towards it, I just need to get better. The big-time performances that everybody might be expecting those will come, but it’s just about consistency.'

The Raiders’ offense has instead lived and died on the arm of their veteran quarterback, who threw for 362 yards in a season-opening win over the Patriots before throwing three interceptions in a Monday Night Football loss to the Chargers last week. Jeanty had 11 carries in the 20-9 loss to the Chargers, in which Las Vegas trailed for almost the entire game. The next opportunity to feed Jeanty comes on Sunday as they head to Washington to take on the Commanders.

Jeanty’s college career added to the hype around his NFL prospects. He rushed for 2,601 yards and 29 touchdowns last season for Boise State, helping the Broncos reach the College Football Playoff. That background underlines why expectations for him were so high, even as the NFL presented a steeper learning curve than college. 'It’s learning,' Jeanty said. 'There’s a learning curve to the NFL for every single rookie. It’s really rare that a guy comes in and is just flat-out balling, so I’m not feeling no type of way towards it, I just need to get better. The big-time performances that everybody might be expecting those will come, but it’s just about consistency.'

Carroll noted that the Raiders want 'more of' Jeanty in the offense as they look to control the latter stages of games. The 1-1 start and the uneven distribution of touches have kept Jeanty in the spotlight as the Raiders prepare for a Week 3 road game against the Commanders. 'We want more of him in the offense as we try to close out games,' Carroll said, underscoring the team’s plan to lean on the rookie sooner rather than later. Jeanty acknowledged patience is part of the process, and that incremental improvement is the expectation as Las Vegas seeks a more balanced attack. The next few weeks will gauge whether the former Boise State star can translate college success into consistent NFL production.

For now, the Raiders remain hopeful that Jeanty’s breakout will come in the second half of the season, when their offense has more complementary options and the running game can anchor late-game decision-making. The emphasis from leadership remains clear: find a rhythm, trust the rookie, and let the offense breathe as the schedule tightens after a small sample size.