AUGUST 3: Despite the report indicating Vegas is open to further negotiations, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk notes that no new dialogue has taken place as of yet. The Barkley situation could still provide a roadmap to a resolution in this case, but the leverage advantage the team has gives them little obligation to actively pursue a deal other than the tag. Plenty of time remains before the regular season, though signs do not point to this situation ending soon.
AUGUST 1: With Saquon Barkley rejoining the Giants earlier than expected — in exchange for a small incentive package — Josh Jacobs stands alone among the franchise-tagged contingent. The Raiders running back has not reported to the Raiders, staying away in protest of the franchise tag.
Barkley was believed to be preparing to skip camp as well, but he changed his mind and now has a high-six-figure incentive set to chase. Would the Raiders be amenable to a similar agreement to bring Jacobs back? The team is open to restarting talks with Jacobs, CBS Sports’ Josina Anderson tweets.
Seeing as the tag deadline came and went without a running back being extended, there is not too much talking left to do. Jacobs is tied to the $10.1MM tag price, though the league’s reigning rushing champion has not signed the tender. The Raiders can rescind it and take their chances with lesser backs. That should not be considered likely. The team can also agree not to tag Jacobs in 2024, but with the Giants not making that concession for Barkley, it is hard to see the Raiders doing so for Jacobs. They still wield the power here, with Jacobs set to miss out on $561K for each regular-season game he misses.
The team can dangle some incentives for Jacobs, who can stay away until Week 1 without being fined. They can also trade him. Teams interested in Jonathan Taylor would stand to be curious about Jacobs, though no extension can be discussed until January 2024. Jacobs, 25, has made a number of cryptic tweets suggesting dissatisfaction with how his negotiations went. The Raiders have been connected to making an offer in the $12MM-per-year range; another report indicated the sides were not close to hammering out an extension.
“I think everybody loves and respects J.J. and understands the process,” Josh McDaniels said, via SI.com’s Gilberto Manzano. “I certainly do. And I’ve said it a million times this year: I love the player and the person, and I understand the process he’s going through. We’re going to work as hard as we can with the guys that are here every day, and ultimately when he’s back, we’re going to look forward to getting him back and integrated into the group.”
Like the Giants, the Raiders are not especially deep at running back. They have 2022 fourth-round pick Zamir White and veteran special-teamers Brandon Bolden and Ameer Abdullah atop their depth chart behind Jacobs. The team also brought in veterans Rex Burkhead and Damien Williams for Tuesday workouts, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets.
Burkhead’s Las Vegas cameo should not exactly come as a surprise, given the number of ex-Patriots the Raiders have brought in since hiring McDaniels and GM Dave Ziegler. Burkhead spent the past two years in Houston, but the veteran played four seasons (2017-20) in New England. McDaniels was the Pats’ OC throughout that period. Williams, whom the Falcons released from their IR list last season, worked out for the Cardinals last week. Burkhead is 33; Williams is 31.
Despite their respective ages, neither has amassed a particularly high number of career touches. Burkhead sits at 680, Williams 490. This has kept the duo’s careers going past age 30, and the Raiders are checking in as they manage a higher-workload back’s hiatus.
