It appears the Las Vegas Raiders will indeed have their starting running back for their Week 1 Monday night showdown against the Baltimore Ravens. On Sunday night, Vic Tafur of The Athletic reported that Josh Jacobs had been downgraded to questionable due to a non-COVID illness. However, on Monday, Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network reported that Jacobs is trending toward playing in the season opener.
Jacobs was a limited participant in practice all week due to what was called a toe injury and an illness. The former No. 24 overall pick out of Alabama made his first Pro Bowl in 2020, as he rushed for 1,065 yards and 12 touchdowns on 273 carries. While Jacobs is now expected to play, expect to see free agent addition Kenyan Drake get some touches as well.
The former Arizona Cardinal rushed for 955 yards and 10 touchdowns while averaging 4 yards per carry last season. While he caught just 25 passes for 137 yards last season, he has the kind of versatility to be a legitimate dual-threat weapon out of the backfield.
It's the Ravens who are facing issues at running back as Lamar Jackson's top three ball carriers in J.K. Dobbins, Justice Hill and Gus Edwards went down with season-ending injuries. As for the Raiders, it looks like their ball carriers will be ready to rock in Vegas this evening.
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