Ashton Jeanty had every reason to believe his second season would be a bigger one. After grinding out 266 carries for 975 yards last year, the Las Vegas Raiders running back was expected to become the engine of a new, run-heavy offense under first-time head coach Klint Kubiak. However, fate had a cruel twist waiting for the player.

During Sunday’s practice, Jeanty’s promising momentum came to a painful halt. The running back had to be helped off the field after suffering an injury, leaving the Raiders to confront a setback. Silver and Black Sports Network reporter Jesse Merrick, who was at the team’s practice facility, detailed what happened in the immediate aftermath.

“Ashton Jeanty left practice today with an apparent right leg injury,” Merrick said on X. “He was running a route, tried to dive for a ball. It was low. He and Darien Porter collided in some way, shape, or form.

“And Jeanty lay on the ground for a bit. Obviously, the whole team went silent. Jeanty got up, had to be helped off by two trainers, and put no weight on that right leg as he was helped off the field.”

The real trouble started with the throw. Jeanty was running a route during team drills when QB Kirk Cousins put the ball low and out in front of him. Jeanty had to dive for it, made some contact with Porter, and came down awkwardly on his right leg. A routine camp rep turned ugly fast.

That is what made the play sting even more. Cousins was not some camp arm throwing meaningless reps. The Raiders signed the four-time Pro Bowler to steady a broken offense, and his history with Klint Kubiak made him the obvious veteran to run the first team while Fernando Mendoza developed. Cousins had already thrown for 44,700 yards and 298 touchdowns in his career.

So, when Jeanty had to dive for a low ball from Cousins, it was not some meaningless backup rep. It happened with the first-team offense, the exact unit Las Vegas is trying to build around him.

After the incident, the Raiders took a knee and said a prayer for their teammate.

As of now, the team isn’t sure how long Jeanty will stay away or how bad his ankle injury is. That said, reports suggest it isn’t a long-term injury, though the Raiders have not commented on Jeanty’s injury yet.

Even last season, the player sustained an ankle injury (left) while facing the Cleveland Browns. Thankfully, it was not a severe injury.

Here’s the thing: coach Klint Kubiak already has enough holes to patch on this Raiders roster. The last thing he needed was one of the few players his offense is actually built around getting hurt in a routine practice drill.

With Jeanty forced to leave the field, the Raiders had to turn to rookie running back Mike Washington Jr., who stepped into the first-team reps for the rest of practice. Washington and Jeanty had been alternating starting reps before the incident.

What happens if Ashton Jeanty can’t get back on time?

Washington isn’t the only insurance policy in Las Vegas’ backfield. The Raiders also have Dylan Laube, Dare Ogunbowale and undrafted rookie Roman Hemby waiting in the wings, giving the team a few more options if Jeanty’s injury keeps him sidelined.

However, if Jeanty is forced to miss time, the spotlight could quickly swing toward rookie Mike Washington Jr.

The fourth-round pick has quietly made plenty of noise throughout training camp and the preseason, piling up 119 yards on just 15 carries. In fact, his biggest moment was a 53-yard burst against the Arizona Cardinals. So, if his team needs him, he will be ready.

Kubiak is also sure about Washington.

“I see a very talented young man with a bright future ahead of him that’s extremely humble and hardworking,” Kubiak said after the Texans game.

That trust was not built overnight. Washington’s resume had already given Las Vegas plenty of reason to believe in him, and camp only strengthened the case. The Raiders traded up from No. 134 to No. 122 to draft him after he rushed for 1,070 yards and eight touchdowns at Arkansas in 2025, earned second-team All-SEC honors and then ran a 4.33-second 40 at the Combine.

And he did not arrive and disappear behind Jeanty. During the joint practice with Houston, Washington consistently hit gaps for big gains against the Texans’ first- and second-team defense and even stiff-armed linebacker Henry To’oTo’o for a touchdown.

Kubiak said Washington had been showing the same thing every day in practice and had already proved he could carry that production into games.

That gives the Raiders some insurance, but it does not make Jeanty replaceable. Washington can absorb the reps, yet the bigger question is how much Las Vegas has to change if its starting back is not ready when the regular season begins.

That matters because Las Vegas already enters 2026 with almost no margin for error. The Raiders should be better than last year’s 3-14 team, but expectations are still low enough that Bleacher Report’s early 2027 mock draft has them picking No. 6 overall, which says plenty about how far this roster is still expected to be from contention.

What the injury means for Las Vegas and the road ahead

The Raiders have three days before Thursday night’s preseason finale against the San Francisco 49ers, with the 53-man roster deadline coming August 30. If Jeanty misses significant regular-season time, it could force Las Vegas to rethink its offensive plans for 2026.

Head coach Klint Kubiak had also made clear how central Jeanty was to the offense he was building in Las Vegas.

“We want to put a lot of pressure on Ashton,” Kubiak said in May. “We think we should continue to challenge Ashton and get more out of him. The best player has got to play, and we’ve got to get them on the field as much as we can.”

Jeanty entered the NFL with the same excitement that surrounded Saquon Barkley when the Giants drafted him No. 2 overall in 2018. The Raiders backed Jeanty with a four-year, $35.9 million deal, including a $22.7 million signing bonus. With so much invested in their young star, his health heading into Week 1 is a major concern.

For now, the Raiders and their fans can only wait for more clarity. The next medical update should give Las Vegas a better idea of what it is dealing with.