Concerning injury update on Raiders RB Ashton Jeanty emerges

It was previously learned that second-year Las Vegas Raiders running back Ashton Jeanty went down with an apparent ankle injury during practice on Sunday. 

Late Sunday night, ESPN's Adam Schefter and NFL Network's Ian Rapoport shared a concerning update regarding Jeanty's status for the Raiders' Week 1 game against the Miami Dolphins on Sept. 13. 

Raiders "unsure" about this aspect of Ashton Jeanty setback

Per Ryan McFadden of ESPN, Jeanty "is believed to have sprained his ankle" on Sunday. 

"The Raiders still are unsure how long Jeanty will be out, but it is not considered a long-term injury," McFadden continued. "The Raiders declined comment."  

As Charean Williams of Pro Football Talk noted, it is unclear whether the sprain is a high- or low-ankle sprain. That said, the fact that the Raiders are "unsure" how long Jeanty will be sidelined could lead one to believe his availability for the matchup against the Dolphins is up in the air at the very least. 

Jeanty suffered the injury when he landed awkwardly after he dove to make a play on a pass thrown by veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins. Rookie Mike Washington Jr. took first-team reps for the remainder of practice after Jeanty's setback. A 2026 fourth-round draft pick, Washington is believed to be the next man up on the depth chart at the position for Las Vegas. 

What Raiders will be without if Ashton Jeanty misses time

The Raiders selected Jeanty with the sixth overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, and StatMuse shows he ended his rookie season ranked 21st in the league with 1,321 yards from scrimmage. Over 17 games, he tallied five rushing touchdowns and five receiving scores. 

McFadden noted that "the Raiders want to be run-heavy under first-time head coach Klint Kubiak" this coming season. Thus, Kubiak has likely been hoping that having Jeanty in the backfield will make life easier for Cousins, who presumably will serve as the Raiders' Week 1 starting quarterback over rookie Fernando Mendoza. 

Unless Cousins posts a winning record, it is likely a matter of when and not if Kubiak will turn to Mendoza later this year. While it sounds like Jeanty's ankle will be just fine whenever Mendoza makes his first regular-season start, it remains to be seen if the ball-carrier will be good to go by the morning of Sept. 13. 

Kubiak is scheduled to speak with the media on Tuesday.