The way Zamir White finished last season was impressive. But there’s a big difference between coming in with fresh legs late in the season than being the starter to begin the season and keeping that same energy throughout.
White averaged 21 carries per game over his four starts to end last season and had 25 carries in the season finale.
Those are 2022 Josh Jacobs NFL rushing title kind of numbers. And that season Jacobs was the ultimate workhorse back, carrying the rock 340 times. The only back that season who had more was perennial workhorse Derrick Henry (349). And no one else in the league even came close to those numbers.
The question is whether we can expect that kind of workload to continue for White this season. From the sounds of it, probably not.
“I think you’re looking for someone to just take the lead,” Raiders OC Luke Getsy said of White. “You get those critical moments in games and situational football that they’re able to respond. And I don’t think that always necessarily means it has to just be one guy. I think that can be two, can be three. But I think it’s always important to have someone in that room that, you know, is the lead of the room. Not necessarily like the years of the bell cow, 25 carries, 30 carries a game. It’s 17 games. I don’t think anybody’s surviving that anymore. But to be the lead guy when it’s crunch time and you know where you’re going with the football, that guy’s gonna get it done and that’s more important than anything else.”
It’s important to remember that when White came in late last season, he was replacing Jacobs and his role in the Raiders’ offense. That role of as a workhorse back. Just as Jacobs had been for his entire career. It’s the reason White had just 30 career carries prior to coming in for the injured Jacobs.
White is in a different offense now. One that portends to take more of a committee approach to the backfield. If that holds true, Alexander Mattison should get a fair share of the carries as well.
But make no mistake, White is the lead back for this offense.
“Zamir’s a special guy,” Getsy added. “The work ethic, the focus, determination. You put the pads on and you see the pad level go down and how that doesn’t affect his game and he’s able to play at a full speed. I think all that stuff’s been fun. We put a lot of eyes on him when the pads got on and he just got better every single day, so I’m excited to see him truly go at it on a regular season Sunday.”
The first regular season Sunday is just a few days away.
