The Las Vegas Raiders have a new running back in town. They moved on from Alexander Mattison and could be looking to trade Zamir White. And we know that they will likely draft a running back in this deep 2205 NFL Draft class.
So, it's safe to say things are changing up a bit in the RB run. Then again, with this regime in town, a lot of changing. The Raiders as a whole are changing, as there aren't many staff members still around from last season. But, maybe that's good considering they won four games. And, that's also why the Raiders are clearing the RB room. They were historically bad running the ball last season.
Of course, the majority of their free agency moves they made were in the first three days or so. Then, late in the week, the Raiders signed former Miami Dolphins and San Francisco 49ers RB Raheem Moster to a contract. He's getting up there in age, so it's obvious this is not a deal to make him the RB of the future. However, this certainly gives the feeling that there will be much better depth in 2025.
So what happened to Mostert last year, when years before he was as good as he was?
It was honestly sad seeing Raheem Mostert get phased out in Miami in 2024, but the writing was on the wall starting in the offseason. The Dolphins traded into the fourth round last year to draft Tennessee rookie RB Jaylen Wright, a sign that they were looking at younger at the position. Then, of course, that was confirmed pretty quickly in the season, as second year De'Von Achane took over in the primary role. The duo had a relatively close split in carries in 2023 - Mostert 13.9; Achane 9.4 - but that flipped quickly in 2024. It's hard to fault it either. Achane was extremely impressive in his rookie season (a ridiculous 7.8 ypc) both as a runner and a pass catcher.
He simply had to be featured more - and through a mostly healthy 2024 he was. But I think Mostert is a worthwhile gamble here. He's only one year removed from a 1000-yard season and a league-leading 18 touchdown runs and 21 total touchdowns in 2023. That doesn't happen by accident. He still runs hard and hasn't lost a step, at least not noticeably, I'd say. He should give the Raiders a reliable runner with a knack for the end zone who can still break one. - Craig Smith, A to Z Sports Miami
It's safe to say the Raiders are getting a guy who just wasn't used enough last year, or put in as good of situations as he should have been. The Raiders, with a revamped run scheme behind Chip Kelly, and new pieces like RBs and OLs, should be able to put him in good positions, even as a potential backup guy.
Chip Kelly's offense can't work if you can't run the ball. And at Ohio State, he used two running backs, a ton actually. We could see the same in Las Vegas, whether the rookie they draft ends up starting, or heck, even if Mostert does. There will be a system that utilizes and keeps two RBs fresh.
The signing of Mostert was a good one, and it shows that the Raiders are going to be committed to turning around a historically bad run game.
