The biggest storyline surrounding the Raiders at the moment is the future of outgoing quarterback Derek Carr. Another key member of their offense also faces the possibility of playing elsewhere, despite the mutual interest which exists to keep him in Las Vegas.
Running back Josh Jacobs is a pending free agent, but he made it clear last month that he would be in favor of a new contract allowing him to remain with the Raiders. When asked at the Pro Bowl weekend about upcoming negotiations with the team, the 24-year-old said he expected them to begin in the coming days (Twitter link via Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal). 
The former first-rounder is due for a new contract since the Raiders declined his fifth-year option last offseason. That move added to the financial pressures of the 2022 campaign from Jacobs’ perspective, and he responded in emphatic fashion. The Alabama product led the league in rushing and scrimmage yards, setting new career-highs across the board. That leaves him feeling comfortable with respect to contract talks.
“I feel like I’m in the driver’s seat,” Jacobs said, via Tashan Reed of The Athletic (subscription required). “I control the ship. However it goes, that’s how it’s going to go, you know what I’m saying? So, I’m not too much worried about it, but it’s definitely got to make sense.”
Jacobs played himself into a considerable raise this year, but his market value could shift in the near future depending on how other high-end backs set to hit free agency fare. The possibility of a franchise tag (valued at $10.1MM or an estimated $16.5MM, depending on if the team uses the non-exclusive or exclusive tag) looms, something which Jacobs unsurprisingly lamented. Nevertheless, Pro Football Network’s Tony Pauline reports that a tag is the expected outcome of this situation.
Jacobs also cited the uncertainty Vegas is currently dealing with at the quarterback position as something to consider in his own negotiations. With Carr set to be either traded or released before the upcoming deadline brought on by the guarantee trigger in his contract, the Raiders will be searching for a new signal-caller this offseason. A change at that position will come with, presumably, several other moves aimed at upgrading what was a 6-11 team in 2022.
“Like I’ve been saying all last year, I feel like we were always so close,” Jacobs added. “That really just comes with [the front office] getting the right people in there and getting some more guys on defense and getting some more guys up front. And obviously, now the quarterback situation. I think that plays a big part of what I want to do, too, if I come back or not. It just depends.”
The Raiders would be foolish if he walks.