The Raiders’ run game hit a new low in Week 9, and the blame keeps circling back to the same place: the offensive line.
After Sunday’s 38-17 loss to the 49ers, Las Vegas is sitting with the league’s worst rushing average at 2.9 yards per carry and the second-lowest rushing total in the NFL with 642 yards. That’s a brutal checkpoint at the midpoint of the 2026 season, especially for a team whose ground game under head coach Klint Kubiak has somehow looked as shaky as it did under Pete Carroll.
For a few weeks, Ashton Jeanty has been the face of the criticism. But Raider Nation Radio host Q Myers pushed back on that idea Monday on the Locked on Raiders podcast, saying the bigger problem is the operation around him.
“The rushing attack is non-existent and the good thing about what we’ve witnessed now that we’ve seen it. It’s not an Ashton Jeanty thing,” Myers said.
He doubled down on that point, making it clear he sees this as a team-wide failure rather than a one-player issue.
“For everyone to say, ‘Oh, Ashton Jeanty is a bust.’ It’s not a Jeanty thing.
It’s a Raiders thing. They can’t run the ball, right?
The offensive line isn’t getting it done, the running backs aren’t getting it done, the wide receivers aren’t blocking. It’s an everybody problem.
It’s not just put it on one single person. I guess that’s the good thing that we learned, even in Sunday’s game against the 49ers.
It’s not Ashton Jeanty.
“It’s not all of a sudden, Mike Washington is the answer to all the ails when it comes to the running attack. No, they’re just not good at running the ball.
They literally ran for 25 yards on Sunday, right? Ashton Jeanty had six carriers for 24 yards.
Mike Washington had six carriers for minus three”
The numbers from Sunday back up the frustration. Jeanty still isn’t consistently making defenders miss, but the offensive line remains the most obvious common thread from last season’s issues to this year’s mess.
There just hasn’t been much push up front. Tyler Linderbaum may be the lone exception among the run blockers, while the guards have struggled and the tackles haven’t exactly lifted the unit either.
According to Pro Football Focus, Kolton Miller has a 60.3 run-blocking grade and D.J. Glaze sits at 62.6, which is only a small step above Spencer Burford at 58.5, Caleb Rogers at 58.9 and Jackson Powers-Johnson at 43.6.
There are still eight games left, but if this trend holds, it would not be a shock to see the Raiders open 2027 with two new starting guards. Right now, too many of the same linemen who couldn’t create lanes in 2025 are back at it in 2026.
In Other News...
Raiders-49ers Game Turned Ugly In A Way Fans Hate
What should have been a routine preseason-style afternoon between the Raiders and 49ers at Levis Stadium instead drew attention for all the wrong reasons, with fan violence breaking out both inside and outside the venue. The scene forced Santa Clara police into a heavy response as they worked to restore order around the stadium and keep the situation from escalating further.
Police are still sorting through what happened in several separate confrontations, and they have urged witnesses to come forward as part of the investigation. For a rivalry game that already carries plenty of edge, the ugly scenes left officials focused less on the football and more on accountability, with authorities making clear they intend to pursue criminal conduct wherever it is identified. [Read more 🡒]
Raiders Ground Game Just Hit An Ugly New Low
The Raiders running game has been stuck in the mud for a while, but Sundays loss to the 49ers offered another grim snapshot of just how far off track it has become. Ashton Jeanty led the backfield in rushing with 25 yards on six carries, while Mike Washington managed negative three yards on six attempts, leaving the offense with little push between the tackles and even less room to breathe.
Jeanty also was heavily involved as a receiver, but the production never followed the touches in a game that underscored the lack of efficiency across the board. For a team already struggling to find any rhythm on the ground, the bigger concern is that the season-long numbers keep sliding in the wrong direction, and there is no easy fix in sight. [Read more 🡒]
Tom Brady's Fox Return Creates An Awkward Raiders Question
Tom Brady is back in Foxs NFL booth, and his return has already revived one of the more unusual side stories around the Raiders. As a part-owner in Las Vegas, Brady brings a different kind of baggage than the typical analyst, which is why his schedule has been watched closely ever since he rejoined the networks game coverage. So far, though, he has not been assigned to call a Raiders game, leaving the obvious question hanging over his broadcasting comeback.
The issue is less about Bradys comfort on camera than the awkward overlap between his new role and his team stake. Fox can work around plenty of broadcast quirks, but a Raiders assignment would invite scrutiny in a way most games would not. Brady has already shown he can still lean into the lighter side of NFL banter, recently making a playful remark about the Patriots current quarterback, but the bigger question is whether the network and league will ever want him in a booth for a game involving Las Vegas. [Read more 🡒]