Josh Jacobs has record day for Raiders with mentor Marcus Allen on hand
LAS VEGAS --Marcus Allen has been a mentor to Josh Jacobs ever since Jacobs entered the NFL as a first-round draft pick in 2019. Fate would have it, then, that Allen was in the Allegiant Stadium suite of Las Vegas Raiders owner Mark Davis on Sunday when Jacobs added his name to the franchise record book for running backs ... alongside Allen.
And it was Allen who corralled Jacobs in the hallway outside of the Raiders' locker room following their 38-20 blowout of theHouston Texans-- a game in which Jacobs rushed for 143 yards and 3 touchdowns -- to tell him, "They should have been running you all along," Jacobs recalled with a laugh.
Consider: Jacobs became just the third player in franchise history to record 150 scrimmage yards and score a TD in three straight games, joining Allen (four straight in 1985) and Clem Daniels (three straight in 1966); Jacobs is also the first in franchise history with three straight games of 100 rushing yards and a rushing TD, three straight games with 150 scrimmage yards and a rushing TD, and 500 scrimmage yards and 6 rushing TDs in a three-game span.
He also joined Allen (5) and Pete Banaszak (2) as the only Raiders players with multiple games of 3 rushing TDs in their respective careers.
"I mean, it's been huge to see him, especially him being who he is," Jacobs said of Allen, MVP of the Raiders' Super Bowl XVIII win and a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
"And being a great running back in this game, to be able to take the time and, you know, mentor me and talk to me about things that he's seeing and things like that, I don't really take that for granted," said Jacobs. "So, it's been huge. To be able to have him here and be happy for me to beat his record is definitely huge for me."
In his past three games, which include a pair of Raiders wins, Jacobs has rushed for a combined 441 yards and 6 TDs while averaging 6.4 yards per carry.
His running has created more opportunities for an often slow-starting offense. Especially for receivers, said wideout Davante Adams.
"In certain situations, whether it's play-action or whatever, the box is obviously going to be a little more stacked," Adams said. "Especially if he keeps [rushing] for a buck-fifty every game, it's going to make it a lot easier for us to go do our thing.
"[Defenses] can still take me away, but at that point, it's just, 'You don't like me.' Because he's going to keep doing what he's doing and having successful games like that. That's what we need out of him if we're going to keep winning."
The Raiders, who opened 0-3, have won two of their past three games and embark on a crucial two-game road trip at the New Orleans Saints (2-5) and Jacksonville Jaguars (2-5).
Jacobs and his running game, along with advice from his Hall of Fame mentor, who was actually on the cover of Sunday's game program, should travel well.
As will the knowledge that Jacobs, taken with the No. 24 overall pick out of Alabama by the previous regime of coach Jon Gruden and general manager Mike Mayock, is in a contract year. The new regime of coach Josh McDaniels and GM Dave Ziegler did not pick up Jacobs' fifth-year option this offseason, instead taking a wait-and-see approach after Jacobs had a down year in 2021.
Jacobs, who authored a pair of 1,000-yard rushing seasons his first two years and was named to the Pro Bowl in 2020, has not publicly stated he is motivated by the seeming slight. Instead, he referred to his conversations with Allen.
"Yeah, man, because [he has] been through it, you know, and he told me his experiences, and how he felt in certain situations and things like that, and that's what helps me like, 'OK, I'm not in this alone. Somebody's already been through this process,'" Jacobs said. "They think the same way I am.
"He told me, 'Just go to work,' from Day 1, since I met him, since I talked to him the first day. He's like, 'Man, you've just got to work, come in and do what you're doing.' He gave me little pointers on little things, whether it's on goal line or whatever, about body placement ... it's definitely been huge. He's been one of my best advocates since I came into the league and so for him to take me under his wing and be willing to do that -- it's been huge for me."
