The Las Vegas Raiders caught a lot of people off guard when they swung on former Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty with the No. 6 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft on Thursday, April 24, in Green Bay, Wisconsin.
The pick made Jeanty the highest-drafted player at his position since Saquon Barkley in 2018. He also had received a message from Maxx Crosby before the NFL Draft, as reported by Kay Adams.
Maxx Crosby Reportedly Had the Inside Scoop on Raiders’ Draft Plans
One person who wasn’t surprised by the pick from the Las Vegas Raiders was franchise cornerstone Maxx Crosby.
The Las Vegas defensive end texted Jeanty the night before the draft, saying he’s “ready to go to war” with him, according to FanDuel’s Kay Adams.
Maxx Crosby texted Ashton Jeanty last night that he's ready to go to war with him OF COURSE HE DID! @Raiders @CrosbyMaxx lfgggg
— Kay Adams (@heykayadams) April 25, 2025
It is not surprising that the All-Pro defensive end knew about the Raiders’ pick in advance. After all, Crosby is one of the franchise’s longest-tenured players, receiving over $30 million per year.
To those outside the organization, the Raiders front office’s game plan for their first-round picks has become pretty clear over the past two seasons: take the best talent on the board, no matter the position.
Last season, that was Georgia tight end prospect Brock Bowers at No. 13, despite the Raiders having taken Michael Mayer at the top of the second round just a year prior. This season, it was the Heisman runner-up and Doak Walker Award winner for the best college running back in Jeanty.
Their faith in Bowers paid off in a big way as he broke multiple rookie records en route to an All-Pro nod, racking up 112 catches for 1,194 yards and five touchdowns in 2024, despite spotty QB play from a rotating carousel of Gardner Minshew, Aiden O’Connell, and Desmond Ridder.
Those QBs could only get the Raiders so far — that unit finished the season rated second-last in PFSN’s Offense+ metric. However, they’ve addressed their field general problem in the form of veteran pocket passer Geno Smith and added an impossible-to-tackle workhorse in Jeanty.
The rookie RB comes highly touted as PFSN Draft Analyst Ian Cummings’ RB1. Cummings notes Jeanty’s elite contact balance, scheme versatility, and good hands as strong points.
“Ashton Jeanty offers outstanding playmaking ability and possesses the game-breaking attributes to justify a team spending high draft capital on a non-priority position, such as running back. He offsets his average size with outstanding speed, burst, and vision,” he wrote prior to the draft.
As for Crosby, despite the nature of his message, he’ll be going to war against Jeanty in the trenches at practice during the offseason. However, come September, the pair will be a fearsome sight for the opposition on either side of the ball.