According to Ryan Wood of USA Today, Las Vegas Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce was disappointed to lose running back Josh Jacobs in free agency, describing him as “the heartbeat” of the squad.
“I don’t like seeing it.” Pierce stated, “I made it known, the heartbeat, Raider through and through.” “As we all know, this is a business. You hear it a lot, but it is true. Money talks, and BS walks. “But that one hurt.”
Jacobs, who spent his entire five-year career with the Raiders, agreed to a four-year, $48 million deal with the Packers in March. In 2023, he had 805 rushing yards and six touchdowns in 13 games, coming off a career-high 1,653 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns the previous year.
The Raiders issued Jacobs a franchise tag last summer, but he declined to sign it. He subsequently skipped Las Vegas’ whole summer and preseason before agreeing to a renegotiate one-year contract worth $11.791 million.
While losing Jacobs will be difficult, Zamir White provides a strong alternative for the Raiders this season. White, who took over as starter after Jacobs sustained a quad injury that kept him out for the final four games, had 451 yards and one touchdown last season. He carried for more than 100 yards in two of his starts, against the Kansas City Chiefs and the Denver Broncos, totaling 145 and 112 yards, respectively.
