Pete Carroll appears to be doing everything he can to bring the “Seattle Way” to Sin City. Between Ashton Jeanty and Geno Smith, the Raiders arguably look more like the 2010s Seattle Seahawks than any other team.
They have the previously overlooked quarterback Smith and the bruising Marshawn Lynch-like running back in Jeanty. However, the team’s new big-name rookie is still just that. He has some improvements to make, and Carroll wasn’t shy about it.
Pete Carroll Reveals Whether He’s Holding Back on Ashton Jeanty
Speaking at his May 21 press conference via Pro Football Talk, the Las Vegas Raiders head coach gave his review of Jeanty thus far. He explained some things about the running back that were stellar, but other things that he needed to work on.
“He’s doing great. He really is. He’s right on point with everything that we’re doing,” Carroll said. “He’s studying really hard. He’s been really diligent about all aspects. There’s nothing that he doesn’t find important. He’s going to work hard on his pass protection, the third down type of work, see if he can contribute in that kind of a role as well.”
“So, we’re not holding anything back on him. He’s getting a lot of plays,” Carroll added. “I think he had the most plays for a running back yet on Monday. I don’t know what the number was today, but it’s there. So, he’s getting a lot of turns.”
Not many had underlined his pass protection as an area for improvement when speaking about the star prospect in the lead-up to the NFL Draft, but the Raiders head coach appears to view it as an area of note.
Jeanty’s Other Potential Reason for Worry Isn’t Something He Can Fix
The former Boise State running back turned heads with his work in college over the last two seasons. 1347 yards on the ground in 2023, followed by 2601 yards on the ground in 2024, leave two obvious reasons to believe in the back. Any lingering doubts dissolve when mentioning his 29 rushing touchdowns in 2024.
However, one area of concern for the back is unfixable, and that is the volume of work he received to get there. Jeanty led the Mountain West Conference in rushing attempts in 2023 with 220 and then led the FBS in attempts the following season.
As such, while his production is impressive, no one arguably has had more wear and tear coming into 2025 as a rookie than Jeanty. Of course, he can “be careful” in the violent league that is the NFL, but that isn’t how running backs produce effectively.
Jeanty can only hope that his body is durable enough to earn him a second contract. That said, he will first need to survive his rookie year intact.