2025 NFL mock drafts: Will Pete Carroll, Las Vegas Raiders target Ashton Jeanty?

Raiders hold No. 6 pick in NFL Draft

Boise State Broncos running back Ashton Jeanty. / Troy Babbitt-Imagn Images

Todd McShay published his second mock draft this week, and the longtime NFL Draft analyst projected the Las Vegas Raiders to select Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty with the sixth overall pick. 

The 5-foot-9, 215-pound Jeanty starred as a junior with 2,601 rushing yards — the second-most in FBS history — and 30 total touchdowns. The Broncos went 12-2 overall and reached the College Football Playoff for the first time in program history.

Jeanty placed second in the Heisman Trophy voting behind Colorado’s Travis Hunter, another top draft prospect.

The Raiders finished 4-13 last season but will have a new look in 2025 with first-year head coach Pete Carroll and new quarterback Geno Smith. 

“You look at what Pete Carroll has had … they want to have a running back like a Marshawn Lynch,” McShay said in a recent appearance on The Bill Simmons Podcast. “Protect the ball, let the defense take care of a lot of the business on the field. And that’s what Jeanty is in terms of an every-down back. … He’s a special back.” 

Here is a collection of opinions from draft analysts on where Jeanty will land in the 2025 NFL Draft.

1. Mel Kiper, ESPN: No. 6 to Las Vegas Raiders

Rationale: “Carroll’s teams have leaned heavily on the run in the past, so I’m giving the Raiders the best player still on my board in Jeanty (No. 4). Elusiveness. Speed. Physicality. Vision with the ball in his hands. Jeanty really has it all. … The Raiders were last in rushing last season, averaging 3.6 yards per carry and 79.8 per game. Jeanty would change everything there and create a solid offensive nucleus with Geno Smith, Jakobi Meyers and Brock Bowers.”

2. Daniel Jeremiah, NFL.com: No. 6 to Las Vegas Raiders

Rationale: “The Raiders can take some pressure off of Geno Smith by adding Jeanty, who is one of the top three players in the draft.”

3. Brent Sobleski, Bleacher Report: No. 10 to Chicago Bears

Rationale: “The Chicago Bears have done a wonderful job building around quarterback Caleb Williams, specifically with how the front office addressed the offensive line. With the trade acquisitions of guards Joe Thuney and Jonah Jackson followed by the free-agent signing of center Drew Dalman, the Bears are leaps and bounds better in the trenches. What else can help Williams and make the offense more potent? A strong ground game. The Bears finished among the league’s bottom eight in rushing last season. Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty immediately gives the squad a star ball-carrier.”

4. Tom Fornelli, CBS Sports: No. 12 to Dallas Cowboys

Rationale: “The Cowboys take Jeanty hoping the man who has received some comps to Emmitt Smith will be their next Emmitt Smith.”

5. Nate Tice and Charles McDonald, Yahoo Sports: No. 6 to Chicago Bears

Rationale: “The Raiders had one of the worst rushing attacks in recent memory last season, needing a clear boost of talent at running back. Jeanty would be an immediate upgrade with the ability to be a long-term solution at the position as well. With Geno Smith in the fold at quarterback for the next few seasons, a running back becomes a more defensible pick this high, and Jeanty’s talent shouldn’t be questioned.”

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