Klint Kubiak already has enough holes to patch on this Raiders roster. The last thing he needed was one of the few players his offense is actually built around getting hurt in a routine practice drill. Second-year running back Ashton Jeanty, the No. 6 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, went down after an awkward collision and had to be helped off without putting weight on his right leg, leaving the entire team fearing the worst. The scare looked brutal, but Las Vegas appears to have dodged a disaster.

Silver and Black Sports Network reporter Jesse Merrick, who was on site at the Raiders’ practice facility, described the immediate aftermath.

“Ashton Jeanty left practice today with an apparent right leg injury. He was running a route, tried to dive for a ball. It was low. He and Darien Porter collided in some way, shape, or form”. Merrick said on X, “And Jeanty lay on the ground for a bit. Obviously, the whole team went silent. Jeanty got up, had to be helped off by two trainers, and put no weight on that right leg as he was helped off of the field.”

ESPN’s Adam Schefter later reported that Jeanty suffered a sprained ankle. There is no firm return timetable yet, but the update at least eased the worst fears. Porter was right there when Jeanty went down, though pinning the injury on him would be lazy.

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The Raiders spent the No. 68 pick on the 6-foot-3, 195-pound cornerback in 2025 after he converted from wide receiver at Iowa State and flashed 4.30 speed. He is physical, long, and still developing, but on this rep he looked more like collateral in a bad sequence than the guy who caused it.

The real trouble started with the throw. Jeanty was running a route during team drills when Kirk Cousins put the ball low and out in front of him. Jeanty had to dive for it, made some contact with Porter and came down awkwardly on his right leg. A routine camp rep turned ugly fast, with Jeanty unable to put weight on his right leg.

Sam Warren, who was covering the Raiders for The Athletic, reported, “Jeanty ran a route during a team period and dove for a pass from quarterback Kirk Cousins. The throw was low and beyond Jeanty’s reach.”

That is what made the play sting even more. Cousins was not some camp arm throwing meaningless reps. The Raiders signed the four-time Pro Bowler to steady a broken offense, and his history with Klint Kubiak made him the obvious veteran to run the first team while Fernando Mendoza developed. Cousins had already thrown for 44,700 yards and 298 touchdowns in his career, including 12,089 yards and 94 scores during his three seasons working with Kubiak in Minnesota.

So when Jeanty had to dive for a low ball from Cousins, it was not some meaningless backup rep. It happened with the first-team offense, the exact unit Las Vegas is trying to build around him.

So once Jeanty went down, Mike Washington Jr. immediately took over the remaining first-team work, which only confirmed what camp had already been showing. The fourth-round rookie had established himself as Jeanty’s clear backup by ripping off big gains against Houston’s first- and second-team defense and forcing his way into a larger role before the injury ever happened.

Kubiak had even said Las Vegas needed to keep “He’s done it in the game, and we’ve just got to keep challenging him and putting more on his shoulders” after Washington proved himself in both practices and games.

So when Jeanty went down, Washington was the obvious next man up, immediately stepping from RB2 into first-team duty.

That trust was not built overnight. Washington’s résumé had already given Las Vegas plenty of reason to believe in him, and camp only strengthened the case. The Raiders traded up from No. 134 to No. 122 to draft him after he rushed for 1,070 yards and eight touchdowns at Arkansas in 2025, earned second-team All-SEC honors and then ran a 4.33-second 40 at the Combine.

But he did not arrive and disappear behind Jeanty. During the joint practice with Houston, Washington consistently hit gaps for big gains against the Texans’ first- and second-team defense and even stiff-armed linebacker Henry To’oTo’o for a touchdown.

Kubiak said Washington had been showing the same thing every day in practice and had already proved he could carry that production into games.

That gives the Raiders some insurance, but it does not make Jeanty replaceable. Washington can absorb the reps, yet the bigger question is how much Las Vegas has to change if its starting back is not ready when the regular season begins.

That matters because Las Vegas already enters 2026 with almost no margin for error. The Raiders should be better than last year’s 3-14 team, but expectations are still low enough that Bleacher Report’s early 2027 mock draft has them picking No. 6 overall, which says plenty about how far this roster is still expected to be from contention.

What the Injury Means for Las Vegas and the Road Ahead

The Raiders have three days before Thursday night’s preseason finale against the San Francisco 49ers, with the 53-man roster deadline coming August 30. If Jeanty misses significant regular-season time, it could force Las Vegas to rethink its offensive plans for 2026.

Head coach Klint Kubiak had also made clear how central Jeanty was to the offense he was building in Las Vegas.

“We want to put a lot of pressure on Ashton,” Kubiak said. “We think we should continue to challenge Ashton and get more out of him. The best player has got to play, and we’ve got to get them on the field as much as we can.”

Jeanty entered the NFL with the same excitement that surrounded Saquon Barkley when the Giants drafted him No. 2 overall in 2018. The Raiders backed him with a four-year, $35.9 million deal, including a $22.7 million signing bonus. With so much invested in their young star, his health heading into Week 1 is a major concern.

For now, the Raiders and their fans can only wait for more clarity. Sunday’s practice a prayer, adding to the concern surrounding Jeanty. The next medical update should give Las Vegas a better idea of what it is dealing with and whether the rookie will be ready for the season.