Oakland Raiders: Josh Jacobs should be the early favorite to win Rookie of the Year

Oakland Raiders first-round pick Josh Jacobs has started off the season hot and should be considered an early favorite for Offensive Rookie of the Year.

The Oakland Raiders second pick of the first round, rookie running back from Alabama Josh Jacobs has started off the season hot, rushing for 430 yards and four touchdowns on a 4.8 average through the first five games of the season.

Three of the last four Rookie of the Year winners were running backs, those three being Saquon Barkley last year in 2018, Alvin Kamara in 2017, and Todd Gurley in 2015.

Jacobs has more rushing yards than any of them did their first five weeks in the NFL minus Todd Gurley, but Barkley had more all-purpose yards.

As a running back on an offense that likes to power it out and run it down the defense’s throat, Jacobs should be the early favorite to win Rookie of the Year, but most sports betting sites seem to disagree.

According to Sportsbettingdime.com, Jacobs currently has the fourth-best odds of winning the award, sitting behind Kyler Murray, Daniel Jones, &  Gardner Minshew.

Bovada has Jacobs odds slightly better, with the third-best odds, with only quarterbacks Murray and Jones sitting in front of him. Meanwhile, DraftKings gives him the best odds, putting him at second behind Murray with odds at +350.

The Offensive Rookie of the Year award was introduced in 1967, meaning there have been 52 winners of the award. Of the 52 winners, 26 were running backs, making for a whopping 50%. Of the remaining 26, only eight were quarterbacks.

While this may be in part due to the NFL being run-heavy for most of its existence, the Raiders adhere by that old school smash-mouth style of play. This is why it is kind of puzzling that either Jones, Murray and especially Minshew would have better odds at this point in the season.

Outside of the odds, Pro Football Focus still has Josh Jacobs with the highest overall grade of any rookie, and also ranked him as fourth in forced missed tackles per touch at 0.34 pre-Week 5.

Without a true No. 1 wide receiver, the Raiders have leaned on Jacobs and the running game on offense, and head coach Jon Gruden has spoken about wanting to get him more involved in the passing game, so his numbers should only increase.

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As of now, he is on pace for over 1,200  yards and around 12 touchdowns, which would actually top what the other most recent Rookie of the Year running backs put up in terms of rushing.

Jacobs currently sits at sixth in the NFL overall in rushing yards and has less carries then everybody ahead of him with just 88.

Gruden seems to be holding true to his words in saying that Jacobs will get more involved in the passing game. Against the Chicago Bears, Jacobs ran a season-high 17 routes — five of which he did not line up as a running back in the backfield but as a receiver.

Jacobs had arguably his best game as a pro last week against arguably the best defense, wearing down their front-seven throughout the game, breaking tackles left and right and showing the vision to cut inside and turn it up-field.

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As the player selected with the pick acquired in the Khalil Mack trade, this was sort of a statement game. The rookie runner had the better game of the two and was the key to the offense’s success, as he has been in every win.

It also showed how running backs should not be devalued and that despite being easier to find than an elite pass rusher, they have more impact on the game at an individual level.

About a week ago Jacobs was asked about the buzz surrounding his rookie season thus far at that point and the talk around him winning Offensive Rookie of the Year on Thursday’s press conference.

"“I mean, it’s good to finally feel like you’re getting recognition, but I really don’t, it don’t really make me feel any different. I still feel like it’s a lot more I could have did, I feel like it’s a lot of plays and a lot of yards I left on the field, so I’m not really satisfied with what I have done so far.”"

Humble words from the Tulsa, Oklahoma native who has in reality done the opposite of leaving yards on the field, always fighting for extra yards and barely ever getting stopped for a loss.

If Jacobs stays on his current trajectory, his odds will only increase and by midseason, he should be universally hailed as the favorite especially considering how this award usually goes to running backs.

Considering Josh Jacobs’ character and backstory, there isn’t a guy it feels better to root for to do so.