There’s something to be said for letting your play do the talking.
It’s a lesson Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty might need to learn the hard way — and at the hands of NFL defenses — after making a wild self comparison to Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley in an article he wrote for The Players’ Tribune titled “A Letter to NFL GMs” published on April 16.
“Most people, they watched the Eagles win the Super Bowl a couple of months ago, they watched Saquon run through everyone in the playoffs, and they thought to themselves, This is amazing,” Jeanty starts the article. “I watched it and I thought something different. I thought, That can be me.“
Comparing himself to Barkley, who is coming off one of the greatest seasons for a running back in NFL history, is a lot to wrap your head around.
In 2024, Barkley became just the ninth player in NFL history to rush for over 2,000 yards in a single season and was named NFL Offensive Player of the Year as well as leading the Eagles to a Super Bowl win. He’s also now the highest paid running back in NFL history.
“I’ve taken the long way,” Jeanty writes to close out the article. “I’m done with that way. If you pick me, it’s simple: I’m coming to your franchise to do what Saquon and the Eagles just did. I’m coming to win, big, soon. It’s TACKLE football … you know what I’m saying? I’d draft the guy they can’t tackle.”
Challenging NFL defenses to tackle you on the internet: Not traditionally the smartest course of action.
Other Side of Coin: Jeanty Might Really Be That Good
One thing to consider is Jeanty might really be that good. While it might be tiresome to read him saying how good he is over and over again, the results say he really might be as good as Barkley — maybe even better.
Jeanty led the FBS with 2,601 rushing yards, 29 touchdowns and averaged 7.0 yards per carry in 2024 and won both the Maxwell Award and the Doak Walker Award. In one pre-draft evaluation, he drew an NFL comparison from NFL draft analyst Lance Zierlein to Pro Football Hall of Fame running back LaDainian Tomlinson.
Tomlinson was the No. 5 overall pick in the 2001 NFL draft by the San Diego Chargers and went on to become the 2006 NFL Most Valuable Player, a 6-time NFL All-Pro and 5-time Pro Bowler.
“Jeanty plays a position that has become devalued on draft day, but his unique talent and the resurgence of the run game in the NFL should force teams to reconsider that factor when weighing his value,” Zierlein wrote. ” … This top-flight running back is capable of becoming the face of an offense in a league where the pendulum might be swinging back to the running game. Jeanty has future All-Pro talent.”
Las Vegas Raiders Odds-On Favorite to Draft Jeanty
Jeanty seems on track to land with the Las Vegas Raiders at No. 6 overall.
“Ashton Jeanty is the overwhelming favorite to be the first running back drafted,” Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio wrote on April 7. “The Raiders are the favorites to draft the former Boise State star. Via DraftKings, Jeanty is a -5000 favorite as the first tailback off the board. He’s a -130 favorite to go to the Raiders, who hold the sixth overall pick.”
