Raiders’ Snap Count Observations: Mike Washington Commands Backfield

The Raiders snapped their four-game losing streak while making a drastic change in the backfield. Ashton Jeanty is no longer the bell cow running back. Instead, he looks to be behind Mike Washington.

That could change throughout the rest of the season, but the Raiders’ coaching staff made it clear they aren’t pleased with Jeanty’s production. 

Las Vegas also had to deal with an injury in the secondary and split reps between two rookies. The Raiders used the draft to take a myriad of defensive backs, but have yet to see real results on the back end. 

Here are the snap counts at two prominent positions from the Raiders’ win over the Jets.

Mike Washington 60% and Ashton Jeanty 40%

Washington dominated the rushing work, taking 25 of the 27 running back carries in Week 8. But the actual snap share indicated this backfield is split. Washington played 38 snaps to Jeanty’s 25. A more even split in carries going forward wouldn’t be surprising.

Jeanty was primarily used as a passing down back and was the Raiders’ second-leading receiver on the day. Outside of some early-season drops, Jeanty has been effective as a dump-off option for Kirk Cousins. 

One area to watch was near the goal line. Washington took eight carries inside the 10-yard line and only produced nine yards and failed to score. He didn’t look like a goal-line back. However, Jeanty has been dreadful near the end zone as well. Jeanty has 10 carries on the season inside the 10 yard line and has just five yards. 

There are only three running backs in the NFL with at least 10 carries inside the 10 and fewer than 10 yards: Ollie Gordon, Jeanty and Washington. The Raiders might not have a good answer for goal-line carries. 

Jermod McCoy 53% and Hezekiah Masses 45%

The Raiders lost starting cornerback Darien Porter on the first play of the game. That left two rookies to fill in. The coaching staff gave nearly an even split to Jermod McCoy and Hezekiah Masses. 

Masses has taken a steep fall this season. He started in Week 2 and had three interceptions across his first two starts. But he was ultimately benched after getting torched by the Chiefs and Patriots. 

McCoy had only played 30 snaps on defense before Week 8, so this was his first real shot to impress on the field. He was targeted three times and gave up two catches for 40 yards and a touchdown. 

The Raiders have a lot of youth in the secondary, but it hasn’t produced good results in recent weeks.