The Las Vegas Raiders made a splash in the 2025 NFL Draft when they selected Ashton Jeanty with the sixth overall pick.
Jeanty was heavily linked to the Raiders following the Draft Combine, and the team made sure to select the electric running back out of Boise State to uplift a struggling ground game. Head coach Pete Carroll loves to establish the run, and he and Las Vegas came away with the best pure runner in the draft.
Jeanty is in line to handle a workhorse role as soon as Week 1, and Carroll and his staff will likely find ways to maximize his potential as a runner and a pass catcher. Having Jeanty rule the backfield will help Geno Smith and the passing game and the Raiders offense as a whole.
While Las Vegas always made sense for Jeanty as a landing spot, he apparently didn’t think he was going there at first. In an appearance on the “Stacking the Box” podcast, Jeanty revealed he received a prank call saying he was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys instead, as transcribed by Ryan Gaydos of FOX News:
“Some dude called me who was like, ‘Yeah… we just traded with the Raiders, and you’re coming to the Cowboys,” he said. “I just hung up, bro. I was like, ‘Come on, bro.’”
It’s impressive that Jeanty was able to quickly identify the call as a joke, likely because his camp caught wind that the Silver and Black would take him if he was available at No. 6. Unfortunately, this wasn’t the only prank call during the draft, as Shedeur Sanders received one as well, saying he had been selected by the Atlanta Falcons after he had slid down the board.
The NFL fined the Falcons organization for leaking sensitive information. However, it sounds like they’ll also need to investigate how someone acquired Jeanty’s personal phone number. It’s incredibly unprofessional to have that information get out, so it’ll be interesting to see how the league polices these incidents going forward.
Regardless, though, Jeanty is now with the Raiders, and it should be a fun year watching him carry the football in Las Vegas.
Ashton Jeanty ranks top five in rookie jersey sales
Ashton Jeanty will be one of the most-watched rookies during the 2025 NFL season as he’s a threat to score on any play. It’s no surprise that Jeanty already ranks in the top five of rookie jersey sales before officially playing a game.
