There's at least mutual interest between Josh Jacobs and the Las Vegas Raiders on the veteran running back re-signing with his longtime team in free agency this summer. One major potential sticking point? Pretty much the same contract negotiation dynamics that prompted Jacobs to hold out until two weeks before kickoff of the 2023 season.
“The Las Vegas Raiders have interest in bringing back running back Josh Jacobs, depending on the price,” ESPN's Jeremy Fowler and Dan Graziano report. “Jacobs was a topic during the team's offensive coordinator interviews, and the Raiders need stability there because of the uncertain quarterback outlook.”
Coming off a dominant First Team All-Pro campaign in 2022, Jacobs sought a lucrative long-term contract from Las Vegas last offseason that paid him like a star. Owners and front offices across the NFL landscape refused to pay up for star running backs, though, and the Raiders were no different, leading to Jacobs holding out from offseason activities and training camp after refusing to sign the franchise tag.
Jacobs and Las Vegas ultimately came to terms on a one-year deal in late August that could've paid him up to $12 million with incentives. The 26-year-old wasn't the same player in 2023 he was the season prior, however, rushing for 805 yards and six touchdowns—half his totals from 2022—on a paltry 3.5 yards per carry in 13 games.
Combined with the Raiders' organizational overhaul, the prevailing assumption was that stark decline in effectiveness all but cinched Jacobs leaving the team as a free agent this spring. That might still be the most likely outcome given new Raiders GM Tom Telesco and his lieutenants already telegraphing they only want to retain Jacobs at a certain price.
Josh Jacobs signals desire to re-sign with Raiders
Jacobs holds no ill will toward the franchise in wake of last season's events, though, recently stressing how much he trusts new coach Antonio Pierce and what the team is building in Sin City—discussing the silver-and-black in terms of “we” while doing it.
“I trust the system and the guys that they’re putting together,” he told Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal during Super Bowl week. “I know that the guys that they’re gonna bring back and the guys that they’re gonna bring in are going to be fully bought in. So, it’s going to be a fun season. Hopefully, we can get this ball rolling, make the playoffs, and go [further]. And give the fans a lot to support.”
Impacting Jacobs' future with the Raiders is the status of rising third-year Zamir White. Not only was he much more efficient than Jacobs last season, rushing for 451 yards on 4.3 yards per carry, but the 24-year-old is is locked into a rookie contract that will pay him a combined $2 million in 2024 and 2025.
Does Las Vegas really want to re-up Jacobs—an older player with more wear and tear on his body at football's most strenuous, short-lived position—with a bargain playmaker like White already in the fold? We'll find out much more come mid-March, when 2024 NFL free agency kicks off.
Either way, Jacobs knows he's found a home in Las Vegas.
“I trust in God's plan,” he said of impending free agency. “Obviously, this is home for me. Regardless how it plays out, this is still somewhere I will forever keep a house and things like that. I will forever keep a home.”
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