Ashton Jeanty Questionable for Raiders at Patriots

Ashton Jeanty is questionable for Sunday's game at New England. The Raiders running back sat out Friday's practice with ankle and foot injuries, and coach Klint Kubiak put it plainly: "He's going to do his best to go," per the Associated Press and ESPN.

That is a scary sentence for Raiders fans. Las Vegas is averaging 3.13 yards per carry, the worst mark in the NFL, and losing its best back would make a stuck run game even harder to fix at Gillette Stadium.

How Jeanty's week went sideways

Jeanty was a full participant Wednesday, dropped to limited Thursday and did not practice Friday before the team flew to Massachusetts. The foot injury did not show up on the report until Thursday, and Kubiak did not say how it happened.

"It's that time of year," Kubiak said. "Guys are getting banged up, and if he can't go, then we got to get the next man up."

The ankle is not new. Jeanty has dealt with it since late August, and he said it had not affected his play. He appeared to tweak it again in Week 4 against Kansas City when a defender landed on it late in the third quarter. He walked to the sideline, came back and finished the game.

The numbers have dipped

Jeanty ran for 102 yards in the season-opening win over Miami. Since then it has been a grind: 55 carries for 162 yards over the last three games, 2.9 yards a pop, with only two runs of 10-plus yards, per ESPN. He still put up 126 total yards, 58 on the ground, in the 30-27 loss to the Chiefs.

A lot of that is not on him. The Raiders average 1.4 yards before contact, last in the league, according to Pro Football Reference via the AP. Kubiak is not blaming his back either.

"I think (Jeanty's) been doing a great job," Kubiak said. "He's a leader on our team. He's a guy we're counting on."

If Jeanty sits, it is Mike Washington Jr.

Rookie Mike Washington Jr. would be the lead back. He has 120 yards and a touchdown on 24 carries, and that score against the Saints in Week 3 is still the Raiders' only rushing touchdown this season.

The rest of the injury picture is mixed. Wide receiver Jalen Nailor (concussion) and backup lineman Trey Zuhn III (knee) are out. Receiver Dont'e Thornton Jr. stays on injured reserve for now after his practice window opened. Right guard Jackson Powers-Johnson is ready to return from a groin injury, but Kubiak would not promise he gets his job back over Caleb Rogers.

Fantasy fans, if Jeanty is your RB1, grab Washington before your league mates do and keep an eye on the inactives Sunday morning.

Jeanty at full speed is the Raiders' best shot at moving the ball in Foxborough. If that foot keeps him in a hoodie, the whole offense has to find a new identity on the road.