Josh Jacobs lifting Raiders into regular season

With the 2023 NFL season starting in three days for the Las Vegas Raiders, the fact that star tailback Josh Jacobs is poised to start the season with the team has been soothing for the coaching staff and the locker room alike.

As Jacobs fives into his second week of practice in preparation for a season coming off of his NFL-high 1,653 rushing yards, the team is fired up, knowing Jacobs will be ready to take on a big load starting Sunday.

Las Vegas coach Josh McDaniels beamed Wednesday when asked what kind of impact Jacobs had had on the team since he signed a revised one-year contract August 26. He had stayed away from the team until then.

“Incredible. The response has been great, voted him a captain,” McDaniels said. He’s in condition, working hard to acclimate to some of the things that maybe have changed since he was here last. But fits in great with his teammates, does a great job of practicing the right way, brings a great mentality to everything that he does from the meetings to the walkthroughs to the field. So, I’ve said this 1,000 times he’s a great player, he’s a great person, he’s a really, really good leader. And he cares deeply about the game of football, and works extremely hard at being the best version of himself that he can be. So, I’m very excited that he’s back.”

Raiders’ star wide receiver Davante Adams said the presence of Jacobs in the past week-plus has “increased’ the mood of himself and other players heading into the regular season and has created some “juice” around the team.

With some rain in the Denver forecast Sunday, the presence of Jacobs may be extremely vital for the Raiders and they are clearly excited about it.