NFL Draft: How Ashton Jeanty fits with Pete Carroll, Las Vegas Raiders

Raiders drafted Boise State running back No. 6 overall

Ashton Jeanty. | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

The Las Vegas Raiders are in the beginning stages of a franchise reset. 

After limping to a 4-13 finish last season, Raiders controlling owner Mark Davis and minority owner Tom Brady cleaned house. With new faces at general manager (John Spytek), head coach (Pete Carroll) and quarterback (Geno Smith), the Raiders will have a completely different look and feel for the 2025 season. 

And that was before the addition of Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty. 

With the sixth overall pick in the NFL Draft, the Raiders landed one of the top running back prospects in recent memory. 

“I think the word is dynamic for us,” Carroll said in his post-draft press conference. “He has the ability to do all of it. He can run with power. He can run in short-yardage areas and find the spacing that he needs to make the plays, and he’s got that marvelous ability — just on any play he can score — and that’s just such an exciting aspect to add to our football team. We just feel very fortunate.”

The 5-foot-8, 211-pound Jeanty put together a junior season for the ages at Boise State, leading the country in carries (374), yards (2,601) and touchdowns (29). He recorded 1,970 yards after contact while forcing 164 missed tackles.

“There’s a lot of things to talk about, but one of the things is he was hard to tackle,” Carroll said. “I mean, guys couldn’t get him on the ground. ... That skill to make people miss and to bounce off tackles and to use the force of the tacklers, he had marvelous talent in that regard.”

Carroll and new offensive coordinator Chip Kelly are both famous for running the football. 

Kelly mixed and matched with TreVeyon Henderson and Quinshon Judkins last season as Ohio State captured the College Football Playoff championship. Carroll rode the combination of Reggie Bush and LenDale White to a pair of national titles at USC and had tremendous success with Marshawn Lynch while coaching the Seattle Seahawks. 

“He’s been calling all evening about it and he’s pretty fired up about it,” Carroll said of Lynch. “There’s nobody who loves the whole running game more than he does and … guys that have style are really special to Marshawn. 

“There are similarities in that his ability to make plays when it doesn’t look like there’s anything there. And Marshawn did that throughout his career. He found a physical way to bank off of people and bounce and just keep alive. And Ashton really is a player who shows that kind of a style. That’s one of the aspects of his style along with his burst and all the other things that he does as well. There’s a special makeup in there and in Ashton in particular.”

The Raiders ranked dead last in the NFL last season at 79.8 rushing yards per game. In terms of scoring offense, the Raiders finished in a tie 29th with the Chicago Bears at 18.2 points. 

Spytek is confident the offense will take a big step forward in 2025 with Jeanty and Smith boosting a returning core of tight end Bowers, wide receiver Jakobi Meyers and left tackle Kolton Miller.

“I mean Brock obviously had a fantastic rookie season, and Jakobi is a great, great slot player for us,” Spytek said. “And now we add another dynamic weapon to it with Ashton. We like our offensive line and how it’s coming together, and then obviously putting the quarterback back there that can lead and rally the guys.”