Rapoport: Mike Washington ‘is going to be a thing’

It was odd usage for Washington, who had at least five carries in three of four games headed into Week 5. Even Ashton Jeanty being limited with his ankle and foot injuries did nothing to bolster Washington’s involvement in the Vegas offense. In fact, Dylan Laube was the team’s clear No. 2 back behind Jeanty on Sunday. Laube had four carries and three receptions and punched in a short touchdown in the second half of the blowout loss. It raises serious questions about what Washington’s workload might look like if Jeanty misses time this season.

Most of Jeanty’s production against New England came on a 31-yard catch and run in the third quarter. Battling through foot and ankle injuries, Jeanty looked hobbled from the start and struggled to break tackles or outrun Patriots defenders to the edge. Most Raiders starters rested in the fourth quarter of a lopsided loss. Jeanty still doesn’t have a rushing touchdown on the season and hasn’t had 100 rushing yards in a game since Week 1 against the Dolphins. Until Jeanty is fully healthy he probably won’t provide much in the way of upside, including next week against a decent Buffalo run defense.

Jeanty will play through his foot and ankle injuries against New England. It wouldn’t be surprising if he cedes some backfield work to a healthy and much more explosive Mike Washington, however. Jeanty should be considered a top-24 option this week while Washington is a desperation flex. Raiders declared WR Jalen Nailor, QB Aidan O’Connell, S Tristin McCollum, RB Roman Hemby, S Dalton Johnson, OL Trey Zuhn, and DT JJ Pegues inactive against the Patriots.

Per Rapoport, Jeanty had a flare-up of plantar fasciitis last week to go along with his ankle injury. He added that Jeanty will work out before today’s game to see how he’s feeling. If he can’t go, Mike Washington Jr. would see the bulk of the backfield touches. Washington has been an explosive complement to Jeanty this year, averaging five yards per carry on 24 attempts. He would jump to the top of the RB2 ranks if Jeanty can’t go.

Kubiak didn’t get into real specifics about the injury when asked. Mike Washington just found his way into real contingency value and is a worthwhile stash/hedge anywhere he was dropped. Jeanty did not practice Friday after a limited session (and the addition of a foot tag) on Thurdsay, so this certainly doesn’t appear to be heading in the right direction. That said, we knew Jeanty would be managing something after the preseason ankle injury and the Raiders have given out rest days on Friday quite a bit already this year. Jeanty is likely something close to truly questionable.

Jeanty has been dealing with the ankle injury throughout the week, but the foot injury was added after Thursday’s practice. Jeanty was officially listed as limited on Thursday, but the Raiders’ RB1 was absent from the media portion of Friday’s practice. We will receive final word on his Week 5 availability soon, but rookie Mike Washington could be in line for a busy day against the Patriots if Jeanty is unable to go.

Oh, dear. Jeanty was a full participant yesterday, listed only with an ankle injury. Today, he was downgraded to limited and the Raiders tacked on a foot injury. The second-year running back has played through the nagging ankle injury thus far and could play through the pain again this weekend, but this situation must be closely monitored. Backup RB Mike Washington must be rostered in all formats.

The Raiders have struggled on the ground for most of the season, and that didn’t change in Sunday’s loss to the Chiefs. Washington’s biggest gain came on an 11-yard run, as he averaged less than 1.0 YPC on his other eight carries. Washington remains the top Raiders back to hold in the event of an injury to Ashton Jeanty, but he has no stand alone fantasy value at this time.

Jeanty was bottled up on the ground for most of the day. A 19-yard run he ripped off in the fourth quarter accounted for 32.8 percent of his yards on the ground, but his work in the passing game was enough to provide a solid day for fantasy managers. Jeanty’s six receptions tied a season-high for the second-year receiver, while his eight targets set a new season-high and tied a career-high he set last season. Jeanty briefly exited this game with what appeared to be a leg/ankle injury, but returned on the following drive after being evaluated. He hasn’t found the end zone since Week 1, but he remains a strong volume play heading into Week 5 against the Patriots. Jeanty’s work as a receiver is keeping in the RB1 ranks despite his struggles on the ground over the last three weeks.

Jeanty exited late in the third quarter with what appeared to be a right leg injury, but was back on the field to take a handoff on the next possession. With nearly a full quarter of play left in the game, we’ll see if Jeanty can finish this one out as the Raiders look to push their record to 4-0 for the season.