Raiders’ Must Make This Key Change

Gordon McGuinness writes for Pro Football Focus, and he wrote an article breaking down the highest-graded plays of Week 16, according to PFF's grading scale. Smith's 60-yard touchdown pass to Jeanty made the list, as it showed off his athleticism and gave the Raiders the lead in a close game.

"Ashton Jeanty has quietly put together a solid season on a struggling Raiders team, and yesterday marked one of his best performances to date. In addition to a long touchdown run, he also recorded this touchdown reception, which earned a +1.5 PFF grade. That grade resulted from a big catch downfield followed by a broken tackle on his way to the end zone", said McGuinness.

Thanks to his offensive line, Jeanty has had to deal with pressure in his face mere seconds after he touches the ball. That's why he's had such an inefficient rookie campaign rushing the ball. However, he's had plenty of success as a receiving back, and that's because in open space, he's still as dangerous as he was in college.

He has five receiving touchdowns this season, which is as many as he's had rushing. On just 50 receptions, he has 326 yards, which averages out to 6.5 yards per reception. In comparison, he's only averaging 3.7 yards every time he rushes the ball.

I hope that this is the worst offensive line Jeanty has to play behind during his time in the Silver and Black, but even if he becomes more efficient rushing the ball, it's clear that his catches should increase.

He's shown he's a force to be reckoned with on screen calls, but that shouldn't be the extent of his receptions. They should have him run routes more often. His speed causes mismatches against linebackers and defensive backs, as seen by his explosive play against the Texans.