Ashton Jeanty predicted to make NFL history in first season with Raiders

With the 2025 NFL season rapidly approaching, many experts are beginning to unleash their predictions for the upcoming campaign. 

We're less than two months away from the start of the preseason, so most rosters are largely set.

With that in mind, Jeffri Chadiha of NFL.com revealed his "way-too-early bold predictions" for the upcoming season.

Chadiha predicted the Bills to win the Super Bowl, Joe Burrow to win the MVP, and more. However, one of his predictions involving the Las Vegas Raiders' first-round pick, Ashton Jeanty, is especially interesting. 

Chadiha predicts Jeanty to rush for 2,000 yards in 2025. That would be an insane accomplishment, considering only nine NFL players have ever eclipsed the 2,000-yard mark and no rookie has ever done it. 

Jeanty should be a heavy favorite for Offensive Rookie of the Year, given the situation he's walking into in Las Vegas. Head coach Pete Carroll is going to do what he always does -- which is run the football like crazy -- and Jeanty is a three-down back built exactly for this type of approach. So instead of simply predicting that Jeanty will win some hardware in his rookie season, it's worth going a step further and having him make history. Nine NFL players have rushed for 2,000 yards in a season, with Saquon Barkley joining the club in 2024. None of those men accomplished the feat in Year 1. Yes, it's a heavy expectation to place on a rookie. It's also apparent that the Raiders won't have that many weapons to rely upon in that offense, and we're living in an era when running the football is trendy again. The Raiders will have to win games with a ground-and-pound approach. That puts Jeanty in position to do unprecedented things.

Jeanty landed in a great spot to put up big numbers as a rookie. New head coach Pete Carroll loves to run the ball, and Jeanty can be a true workhorse. 

Still, even though Jeanty is the clear RB1 in Las Vegas, 2,000 yards is highly unlikely.

Hall of Famer Eric Dickerson currently holds the record for most rushing yards as a rookie with 1,808.

If anybody could break the record, though, Jeanty is a good bet. The Boise State product rushed for 2,601 yards and 29 touchdowns in 2024 and finished second in Heisman Trophy voting. Overall, Jeanty rushed for 4,769 yards in his college career and owns several Boise State records. 

The Raiders' entire team didn't even gather 2,000 rushing yards in 2024. In fact, the Raiders had the league's worst ground game, ending with just 1,357 rushing yards. 

It seems all but guaranteed the Raiders won't finish last in rushing again in 2025. If Jeanty gets 2,000 yards, it seems like a foregone conclusion that he would also win Rookie of the Year.