Raiders Double Down on Need That Plagued Them for Years

The Las Vegas Raiders' struggles on the field have resulted from several shortcomings by prior regimes in the Raiders' front office. Las Vegas suffered from poor coaching and an even worse roster. The Raiders have spent many seasons trying to work around years of bad moves to no avail.

Raiders Struggle

Another significant struggle for Las Vegas has been maximizing its running backs and its ground game. Their lack of a dependable ground game has largely been due to a bad offensive line. Las Vegas added running back Ashton Jeanty with the No. 6 overall pick in last year's draft.

The Raiders still struggled to run the ball or maximize Jeanty's talents. Under Klint Kubiak, that will not be a problem. Kubiak is known for preferring two capable running backs. Both Jeanty and rookie running back Mike Washington qualify as such.

Washington's Edge

A common theme between many of the players Las Vegas has added in free agency and the NFL Draft under Raiders General Manager John Spytek. The rebuild Las Vegas has embarked on will be anything but easy, and the Raiders aim to return to a physical style of football.

They have made it a point to add players who will not shy away from the tough task at hand. Many of the Raiders' new additions under Spytek have an edge, which is not always the case with players in the league. Washington was one of the Raiders' latest additions with this trait.

“I'm from New York. So, like coming up, I've always had that chip on my shoulder, always just having that competitive spirit and that willingness to just want to do better. And that's something that won't fade away. Also, I'm sure you guys probably seen but my brother, he’s an ex Marine, and growing up, all I would see was him being disciplined,” Washington said.

“Not motivated, but disciplined, because motivated are emotions, they come and go. But discipline is me seeing him get up at 6 am in the morning every single day, and go work out before going to high school, going to class. So, me seeing that, that kind of just been instilled in me. That's just who I am now. So, that's something that just won't fade away.”

Director of College Scouting Brandon Yeargan praised Washington's fit with the team as the team aims to rebuild its offense under Kubiak. The Raiders already have Jeanty, so this should only confirm how much they believe in Washington and what he will bring beyond Jeanty.

“We were excited to get him for sure, 6-1, 225, 4.3, ran for over 1,000 yards this year, super productive, high character. Yeah, we were really excited. We feel like he's a really good fit for Coach [Klint] Kubiak and Andrew’s [Janocko] scheme in the wide zone system. So, pretty fired about him and the person he is, too,” Yeargan said after the final night of the draft.

Vice President of Player Personnel Brandon Hunt noted the Raiders' front office's excitement upon landing Washington. Las Vegas still needs more help on both sides of the ball, but Jeanty and Washington give Kubiak the two capable backs he needs to be able to run his offense at a high level.

“It's awesome. This guy is going to generate explosives for us, and just another weapon that's going to add to our offense. And Klint [Kubiak] and [Andrew] Janocko are going to do a great job of utilizing them and help us score the football,” Hunt said.

The addition of Washington may not seem like a big deal right now, but it could change quickly under Kubiak. He will be able to help Las Vegas on the ground or through the air.

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