Game day: Is Ashton Jeanty bound to break out against Geno Smith's Jets?

The Raiders are paying the backmost they look arsenic an hostile contiguous astir $15 cardinal much this play than the backmost they’ll commencement for themselves successful the game.

Geno Smith gets his accidental to bushed the Silver and Black a twelvemonth and a fractional aft the franchise traded a third-round prime to get him and signed him to a $75 cardinal declaration extension.

Smith’s New York Jets (2-5) big the Raiders (3-4) astatine 10 a.m. PT this greeting astatine MetLife Stadium with the crippled airing connected CBS (KLAS-TV Channel 8), streaming connected Paramount+ and broadcasting connected Raider Nation Radio 920 AM.

Needless to say, Smith didn’t enactment retired arsenic a Raider aft coming successful alongside past year’s caput coach, Pete Carroll.

Las Vegas finished an NFL-worst 3-14 and traded Smith to the New York Jets successful the offseason portion agreeing to sorb $16.2 cardinal of his wage this season.

The Raiders’ backmost concern has surely improved since past but doesn’t stay afloat settled. They wooed escaped cause Kirk Cousins, signing him to the seasoned minimum wage of $1.3 cardinal with a guaranteed $10 cardinal bonus acceptable to beryllium paid successful the offseason. The Atlanta Falcons are obligated to prime up the bulk of his wage this play aft releasing him.

Cousins has been a bargain for the Raiders, starring the NFL with 16 touchdown passes and sitting astir league-average by astir metrics, but fans are inactive calling for his occupation amid a four-game losing streak.

The calls for thrusting No. 1 wide draught prime Fernando Mendoza down halfway are getting louder, and Cousins whitethorn request to bushed the Jets to momentarily quiescent them. The effect could besides power whether oregon not the Raiders are funny successful selling arsenic the Nov. 10 commercialized deadline approaches.

The Jets beryllium arsenic a 1.5-point favourite successful a crippled that feels comparatively high-stakes contempt however poorly some teams are playing.     

Favorable matchup: Raiders moving backmost Ashton Jeanty vs. Jets’ antiaircraft weaknesses

It’s opening to consciousness similar present oregon ne'er for past year’s No. 6 wide pick. Jeanty has been 1 of the NFL’s slightest businesslike rushers with 3.1 yards per carry, a touchdown and nary gains of much than 20 yards. But the Jets bring the easiest matchup he’s faced since earlier the Raiders’ losing streak began. New York rates No. 24 successful the NFL successful unreserved defence per the DVOA ratings. The Jets are caller disconnected giving up a career-high 103 yards to Miami Dolphins moving backmost Ollie Gordon, who went 173 selections down Jeanty successful past year’s draft. Better yet for Jeanty’s prospects, the Jets are besides deficient successful defending moving backs successful the passing game, astatine No. 22 via DVOA. Jeanty has delivered arsenic a receiver this season, tied for the squad pb on with choky extremity Brock Bowers by hauling successful 34 receptions. He’s turned that into 312 receiving yards and 3 touchdowns. For amended oregon worse, Raiders manager Klint Kubiak’s crippled program figures to diagnostic Jeanty adjacent heavier than mean against the Jets.

Problematic matchup: Raiders’ violative enactment vs. Jets antiaircraft setup

Some stay forgiving of Jeanty’s underperformance, and spot astir of the blasted connected the Raiders’ slumping violative line. There’s a batch of statistical grounds to marque that case, including the portion ranking No. 31 successful the NFL successful adjusted enactment yards, a measurement that assigns however overmuch the violative enactment is liable for the tally game. Las Vegas had been stronger successful walk extortion to commencement the twelvemonth but has since tailed disconnected determination too, putting Cousins nether a batch much duress. Kubiak downplayed immoderate of the issues earlier successful the losing streak but sounded much mostly alarmed aft past week’s 35-21 nonaccomplishment to the LA Rams. He said everything was connected the array to hole it going into the Jets game, including imaginable unit changes. Kubiak has been complimentary of rookie third-round prime Trey Zuhn, who tin play each violative enactment presumption and mightiness beryllium inching person to getting his archetypal existent accidental to start. The defender positions person been the Raiders’ biggest weaknesses, arsenic escaped cause signee seasoned Spencer Burford has regressed connected the near portion a power from Jackson Powers-Johnson to Caleb Rogers connected the close hasn’t worked out. The Rams, led by aboriginal Hall of Famer Aaron Donald, tortured Rogers a week ago.   

Gamebreaker:  Wide receiver Tre Tucker

Receiver extent remains a large weakness for the Raiders, but they’ve figured retired the apical targets amended than astir anticipated. There was a batch of interest implicit who would capable the No. 1 receiver relation coming into the play but, successful everything but sanction alone, it’s been Bowers. The third-year All-Pro has lined up arsenic a accepted choky extremity connected little than 15% of snaps per Pro Football Focus. He’s often successful the slot oregon retired wide, and has not lone produced but recovered a worthy sidekick successful Tucker, who’s been supra mean for a de facto No. 2 receiver. Tucker has 10 catches for 200 yards and 3 touchdowns successful the past 2 games, and some the Rams and Buffalo Bills — who bushed the Raiders 33-30 2 weeks agone — are amended against heavy passes than the Jets. Tucker has repeatedly flashed his world-class velocity to get down opposing defenses, and opportunities should beryllium determination for Cousins to drawback him streaking down the tract for a 3rd consecutive week.     

Big Number: 86

Former starting antiaircraft tackle Jonah Laulu had 86 tackles successful his archetypal 2 seasons for the Raiders, a franchise grounds for antiaircraft linemen, earlier getting released successful the mediate of his 3rd twelvemonth past week. The Tennessee Titans promptly claimed the Las Vegas hometown hero, who graduated from Centennial High, disconnected waivers. Cutting Laulu can’t rather registry arsenic a daze considering Kubiak and his unit ne'er seemed arsenic precocious connected him arsenic the past 2 regimes and made him a game-day inactive successful 2 of the past 3 weeks. Laulu wasn’t an perfect acceptable successful first-year antiaircraft coordinator Rob Leonard’s 3-4 basal scheme, truthful the Raiders moved on. Letting him spell shows increasing assurance successful second-year erstwhile sixth-round prime JJ Pegues, who was progressive successful beforehand of Laulu successful the aforementioned 2 games, and Tim Keenan, precocious claimed disconnected waivers from the Rams. The duo played a combined 35 snaps against the Rams. Both person overmuch much size than the 289-pound Laulu astatine 325+ pounds apiece and should amended code the Raiders’ weakness against the run. Laulu’s spot was much successful walk rushing.    

Best Bet (5-2): Ashton Jeanty implicit 13.5 rushing attempts

Last week, we cashed Cousins implicit 33.5 walk attempts retired of a content that the crippled publication would skew heavy toward the aerial attack. The Raiders are going to bash the other this week. Kubiak is hopeless to get Jeanty going and should spot the wide way disposable against the Jets. Rookie moving backmost Mike Washington deserves much of the carries but Kubiak doesn’t afloat spot him. This should beryllium a adjacent crippled with the Jets improbable to propulsion away, truthful the Raiders won’t request to wantonness the tally similar they’ve done often during the losing streak. Jeanty should beryllium successful, truthful implicit 49.5 rushing yards and an even-money anytime touchdown stake were besides considered, but attempts mightiness beryllium the safest bet. It’s hard to spot the Raiders not sticking with Jeanty adjacent if helium struggles against the Jets.