Jacobs, Abram won’t play against the Jets
Raiders’ leading rusher and tackler both have injuries
The chance of the Raiders being the first victim of the winless New York Jets went up slightly Friday with the news that running back Josh Jacobs and safety Johnathan Abram will miss the game due to injury.
Jacobs, who leads the Raiders with 782 yards rushing
and nine touchdowns, injured an ankle late in a 43- 6 loss to the Atlanta Falcons. Abram, the Raiders’ leading tackler, played 75 snaps against Atlanta and showed up on the injury report for the first time Wednesday.
The Raiders are 6- 5 and have lost their last two games. The Jets are 0-11 and likely headed for a postseason housecleaning in terms of the coaching staff and personnel.
Raiders coach Jon Gruden delivered the news in a video teleconference before the team charter departed for New Jersey.
“We’re going to leave Jacobs here. He won’t play,” Gruden said. “We’re also going to leave John Abram here. He won’t be able to play.”
At his weekly press conference Monday, Gruden said he’d spoken to Jacobs, who anticipated being good to go for the Jets game.
“Josh is being evaluated with our training staff now for an ankle sprain,” Gruden said. “I talked to Josh earlier this morning and he’s confi
dent he’s going to be able to play. I don’t think he was 100 percent yesterday, he tried to fight through it.
The tenor shifted Friday, and Gruden said he wasn’t sure about the availability of either Jacobs or Abram beyond Week 13. The Raiders host Indianapolis (7-4) the following week in a game that could have playoff implications.
“I was optimistic they would both play in New Jersey, but I was wrong,” Gruden said. “I’ve been wrong a lot lately. We hope to have those guys back next week. If we don’t, we’ll carry on. We have capable players, and we’ll be ready to play.”
Given Gruden’s career-long stance of taking each game seriously and wanting players who are cleared medically to be on the field, it’s unlikely Jacobs and Abram are being held out to save them for a more important game against Indianapolis.
The Raiders lost to New York 34-3 a year ago on the road, and given the way they lost to Atlanta, it’s hard to imagine them taking the Jets for granted.
Jacobs and Abram, first-round draft picks in 2019, are tone-setters for the
offense and defense in terms of physicality and considered foundational pieces of the future.
In terms of the immediate future, the duties of lead running back will fall to Devontae Booker, the Raiders’ second-leading rusher with 326 yards on 59 carries with three touchdowns. Booker has been a pleasant surprise spelling Jacobs after languishing on the bench for the three previous years with the Denver Broncos.
Returning in the nick of time at running back are Jalen Richard, who missed the last two games with a chest injury, and Theo Riddick, who will be activated from the practice squad after being on the COVID-19 list.
“(Booker) is going to get the start,” Gruden said. “He’s a good player. He’s proven he can carry the ball, catch it and pass protect, and we’ll see Theo Riddick for the first time. He’s back off the virus, and Jalen Richard, who’s been out the last couple of games, hopefully is ready to go as well. So we’re excited about Book and Riddick returning to the lineup.”
Booker has carried the ball more than 10 times just once this season, gaining 81 yards on 16 carries against Denver. Richard has been used sparingly, with 83 yards on 14 carries, while Riddick has been active just once, carrying twice for 13 yards in Week 3
against Buffalo.
Abram’s absence leaves Jeff Heath and Erik Harris as the likely starters at safety. Abram is the Raiders leading tackler with 63 despite missing one game on the COVID-19 list. Also available is slot corner Lamarcus Joyner, who came off the COVID-19 list and has played deep safety in previous years.
Also returning after missing two games on the coronavirus list is defensive end Clelin Ferrell.
Three players were listed as questionable: cornerback Travyon Mullen (illness), cornerback Isaiah Johnson (groin) and defensive tackle Maurice Hurst (ankle/calf). Hurst was the only one of the three to participate in practice Friday.
LITTLETON’S REDUCED ROLE >> Linebacker Cory Littleton, who came off the COVID-19 list against Atlanta, likely won’t be back to playing nearly every snap defensively.
Signed to a three-year, $36 million contract in the offseason, Littleton played between 97 percent and 100 percent of the defensive snaps through eight games but only 58 percent against Atlanta after missing two games on the COVID-19 reserve list. Both Littleton and Nick Kwiatkoski were targeted in free agent to be every-down linebackers.