Getty Image / Chris Unger
With the start of their pre-season quickly approaching, the Las Vegas Raiders find themselves in a stalemate with star running back Josh Jacobs.
After leading the NFL in rushing yards last season, Jacobs was expecting to get a significant commitment from the Raiders this offseason.
Instead, they used the franchise tag on him.
There was still a chance after that for the two sides to reach an agreement on a contract extension, but the deadline for that has now passed and Jacobs has been holding out since.
With no indication that Jacobs will be returning to the Raiders soon, the team does have one pretty drastic move that they may consider before the start of the regular season.
The Raiders could rescind the franchise tag and let Jacobs head into free agency.
It would be a disappointing end to Jacobs’ tenure with the Raiders after the team spent a 1st round pick on his just 4 years ago.
However, the decision could become even more disappointing depending on who ends up signing him afterwards.
According to Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio, the Denver Broncos and Kansas City Chiefs will both be among Jacobs’ suitors if the Raiders let him go.
What happens if the Raiders rescind the franchise tag from Josh Jacobs? He might go straight to Kansas City. https://t.co/m61THFBbEF
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) August 5, 2023
Jacobs heading to the Chiefs should be a pretty terrifying thought for NFL defenses.
The Kansas City Chiefs were already football’s best offense in 2022. Adding an last year’s leading rusher would give opposing defensive coordinators some really tough decisions to make.
The Denver Broncos adding Jacobs isn’t quite as intimidating of a possibility, but they would arguably have the league’s most talented backfield if it happened. The team is expecting to have Javonte Williams back early in the year and he flashed plenty of talent early in his career before suffering an ACL injury.
If the Las Vegas Raiders end up letting Jacobs walk for nothing it will be a pretty tough blow and it looks like a couple of their division rivals might try to make it even worse them.