Just four years ago the Las Vegas Raiders selected running back Josh Jacobs out of Alabama with the No. 19 overall selection in the first round of the 2019 NFL draft. Now, it is beginning to appear as if the two sides are heading into their final season together.
Last April, the Raiders declined Jacobs’ fifth-year option on his rookie contract making him a free agent this offseason. When the 2023 offseason arrived, the Raiders placed the infamous franchise tag on Jacobs to keep him in Vegas for one more year while the two sides try to reach a long-term deal. The deadline for franchise players to be extended to a long-term deal was Monday at 4 p.m. ET, which came and passed with no deal.
With no deal reached, Jacobs is yet to sign his $10.091 million franchise tag tender for the upcoming season, so they won’t be fined for missing training camp. It is Jacobs’s game checks he would lose if the holdout lasts into the regular season.
Jacobs is coming off of far and away the best season of his NFL career and rightfully deserves to be paid. His value is at an all-time high, so delaying another season for a potentially long-term contract is not in his best interest. Especially considering there are no promises that any other team will sign him to a long-term deal in the modern NFL which has entirely devalued the RB position. Jacobs was the NFL’s rushing yards leader in 2022 with 1,653 on 340 carries which was good enough to earn him a First-team All-Pro selection.
The #Raiders and star RB Josh Jacobs did not reach a deal, per me and @TomPelissero, despite extensive negotiations. Now it’s unclear when he’ll show to play on the tag. pic.twitter.com/1vAJE8j6U4
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) July 17, 2023
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