The two engines powering the Las Vegas Raiders’ offense all season long have been receiver Davante Adams and running back Josh Jacobs. With the Raiders now having won three consecutive games, it has again been Adams and Jacobs operating at another level.
And while Adams has been truly amazing, it is Jacobs who has the opportunity to make some history, albeit a slight one. The single-season rushing record is one of the longest-standing, most high-profile records in the NFL. Eric Dickerson rushed for 2,105 yards back in 1984, and just six backs have eclipsed 2,000 yards since, with Adrian Peterson coming the closest to breaking the record with 2,097 yards in 2012.
Jacobs has been on an absolute tear in the last three weeks, and according to NFL Reporter Dov Kleiman, if he remains on this pace, would put him just ahead of Dickerson’s single-season record:
#Raiders @iAM_JoshJacobs is averaging 5.4 yards per carry this season and ran for 482 yards his past 3 games.
If he keeps that pace going through the final 5 games of the year (160.6 YPG) he’ll finish exactly 1 yard ahead of the single season record of 2,105 set by Dickerson. pic.twitter.com/yUAat9Sjdj
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) December 5, 2022
This is far from a guarantee or even a good chance for Jacobs, as averaging 160 rushing yards per game over an eight-game stretch would be absolutely unbelievable. But putting anything past Jacobs this season would be foolish, considering just how good he has been.
Jacobs now finds himself far ahead of the pack in rushing yards this season, with his 1,303 yards nearly 200 yards ahead of Nick Chubb, who is second. Additionally, his 5.4 yards per carry is the fourth-highest among running backs, but of the three ahead of him, only Tony Pollard of the Dallas Cowboys is within 100 carries of Jacobs. Quite simply, nobody is matching Jacobs’ volume and efficiency this year.
The road for Jacobs to potentially break this record won’t be easy, however, as the Raiders face 3 of the top 10 rush defenses over these last five games in the 49ers, Steelers, and Patriots. But if the Raiders plan to keep this win streak going, they must continue to ride Jacobs, and there is no doubt that they plan on doing just that.
