Las Vegas Raiders head coach Klint Kubiak is catching flak from fans after Ashton Jeanty went without a touch in the first quarter of Sunday’s 38-33 win over the New York Jets. The light early workload came just days after the running back’s comments about the Jets’ defense made headlines.

The Raiders evened their record at 4-4 with the win at MetLife Stadium. Even so, the focus turned to the backfield, where Jeanty had carried the load all season, and several fans tied his quiet start to those comments.

Mike Washington Jr. Takes Early Downs While Ashton Jeanty Waits

The storyline took shape on Wednesday, three days after the Raiders managed just 48 rushing yards on 17 carries in a 35-21 loss to the Los Angeles Rams. That day, Jeanty sized up New York’s defense while looking ahead to the trip east.

“I think we can definitely get the run game going. Get back on track and just really get after these guys,” Jeanty said. “A couple guys out there that don’t really want to tackle, but I’m not going to say names.”

Come Sunday, however, it was backup Mike Washington Jr. who started in the backfield and handled the early-down work. He took six carries for 21 yards across the Raiders’ first two offensive possessions, the first of which ended in Kirk Cousins’ 12-yard touchdown pass to Brock Bowers.

Jeanty finally got his first touch on the opening play of the second quarter, taking a short pass from Kirk Cousins 45 yards before following it with an 8-yard carry on the next snap.

NFL Reporter Connor Hughes summed up how the opening 15 minutes had gone for him: “Appears as if he was benched for the first quarter (only playing third downs).”

Fans Take Aim at Klint Kubiak Over Jeanty’s Quiet Start

The Raiders had left Jeanty off their final injury report, and the early workload didn’t sit well with fans, several of whom questioned Kubiak’s motives. One wrote that “Klint is just being petty because of what he said about the Jets.”

Another fan was just as critical of the Raiders’ head coach: “Klint Kubiak is crashing out so hard … who actually thinks this benching makes sense?”

Jeanty, however, entered Sunday with 328 rushing yards on 106 carries, and his 3.1 yards per carry ranked 38th of 42 qualified rushers. His eight carries against the Rams had produced just 15 yards. Pro Football Network’s NFL RB Impact Grade has him at 73.3 through Week 8 of the 2026 season, 24th of 45 graded running backs.

He had also caught 34 passes for 312 yards and three touchdowns before Sunday. According to Next Gen Stats, 30.2% of his carries had come against eight or more defenders in the box, the fourth-highest share of 39 qualified rushers.

Others came to Jeanty’s defense, with one fan writing that “benching him for saying what everyone already knows is crazy.”

Another fan was similarly unimpressed: “Kubiak not letting Jeanty back up his own comments is pretty lame.”

One fan kept it brief: “Clown move by the HC.”

Once Jeanty was back in the mix, he did most of his damage as a receiver, catching three passes for 64 yards, including a 45-yarder.

On the ground, he finished with just two carries for nine yards.

Washington, who entered Sunday with 40 carries all season, took 25 of the Raiders’ 33 carries and turned them into 83 yards.