Las Vegas Raiders star running back Josh Jacobs will likely be a holdout from training camp after the deadline for him to sign a long-term contract passed Monday afternoon.
Jacobs, 25, was handed the dreaded franchise tag during the spring. He had until Monday to reach an agreement on a long-term deal to avoid playing under the $10.09 million tag figure in 2023.
As we saw with fellow running backs Saquon Barkley (New York Giants) and Tony Pollard (Dallas Cowboys), nothing came to fruition on that end.
Related: Will Saquon Barkley Or Josh Jacobs Hold Out?
While previous reports concluded that Jacobs and the Raiders were far apart on extension negotiations, this nugget from NFL Media’s Tom Pelissero sheds some new light on the situation.
According to the insider, Jacobs was sitting in a car in the parking lot of the Raiders’ facility in Henderson with teammate Maxx Crosby ready to sign a new deal before the deadline passed. It did not happen, leading to the real possibility of a holdout from training camp later this month.
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Josh Jacobs stats (2022): 1,653 rushing yards, 400 receiving yards, 2,053 total yards, 12 TD
The reigning NFL rushing champion, Jacobs pushed back later Monday evening on suggestions that he was looking to reset the running back market.
San Francisco 49ers star Christian McCaffrey is currently the highest-paid running back in the NFL at $16.02 million annually. No other player at this position is making more than $15 million. Only five running backs are earning as much as $12 million per season.
As the Jacobs’ situation was playing out with Las Vegas, other running backs took to social media as a way to blast the NFL over the devaluation of the position in the modern league.
In terms of what this means for Josh Jacobs and the Raiders, previous reports suggested that a long-term marriage is unlikely to be in the cards.
Jacobs can hit NFL free agency next March. Then again, Vegas has the ability to place the franchise tag on him again.