Boise State RB Ashton Jeanty is one of the best overall players in the 2025 NFL Draft. He’s a bowling ball of a back who combines some impressive tackle-breaking skills with a savvy ability as a pass catcher as well. Jeanty’s compact 5’9 frame gives him a low center of gravity, which helped him have the most yards after contact in college football last season. In fact, his total yards after contact were more than the second leading rusher in the country had TOTAL.
Despite being the third player on my top 50 big board, there are spots where Jeanty’s talent probably wouldn’t be the best. So, which teams are the best fit for the Doak Walker Award winner? Here are some of my favorites.
Las Vegas Raiders
The Raiders hold the sixth pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, and are widely seen as the first likely landing spot for Jeanty. I like the fit for Jeanty largely because of who will be calling plays in Vegas. In the offseason, Raiders’ head coach Pete Carroll hired former Ohio State offensive coordinator Chip Kelly to do the same thing for the Raiders, and something I loved about watching the Buckeyes this season was their run game that Kelly designed, getting his guys downhill with gap scheme runs. Jeanty can fit a gap or zone scheme offense but when he gets going downhill on counter or duo it’s a beautiful sight to see.
The Raiders’ offensive line is still coming along, but according to Sports Information Solutions, they had the ninth-lowest Blown Block Rate in the NFL. With young left guard Jackson Powers-Johnson and Kolton Miller on the left side and a right side of the line that’s still growing, it’s easy to see how Jeanty can fit into this formula for a team like Vegas.
Chicago Bears
After a flurry of moves to fortify the offensive line, the Bears are in a prime spot to draft Jeanty with the 10th overall pick. Chicago traded for guards Joe Thuney and Jonah Jackson, then added center Drew Dalman in free agency. With head coach Ben Johnson running the offense, it makes a lot of sense why Jeanty would be a good fit in Chicago. D’Andre Swift is a … freestyle jazz style of runner, one that doesn’t really mesh with the offense Johnson is running in Chicago now. RB Roschon Johnson is a fine player, but clearly lacks the juice to be more than a singles hitter at the position.
Jeanty’s home run ability and vision make him a really nice fit in Chicago, giving the Bears another weapon for QB Caleb Williams and a run game that will actually be competent.
Los Angeles Chargers
You know we had to put a Jim Harbaugh-led team on this list. Despite signing Najee Harris in the offseason, I think still adding a rookie RB like Jeanty makes a lot of sense for the Chargers. With as much gap scheme runs the Chargers like to deploy, Jeanty can be much more explosive than Harris, while not having to carry the ball as often. The Chargers are still putting together the interior of the offensive line, but with two bookend tackles and Harbaugh designing the run game it would make a lot of sense.
With the 22nd pick in the draft, the Chargers probably won’t be in position to take on a guy like Jeanty, and more than likely will add a RB later in the draft. However, if Jeanty were to fall here, it would be so much fun to see Jeanty in powder blue.
Denver Broncos
Sean Payton loves to run his offense through versatile backs. A thing that I think gets undervalued in Jeanty’s game is how good of a pass catcher he is. He didn’t do it much in 2024 because of how dominant he was as a runner, but in 2023 his 3.9 Yards per Route Run were among the best in college football at the position. The Broncos need a versatile player at the position, and with QB Bo Nix’s continued emergence, someone who can be more explosive than what the Broncos were trotting out last season. Denver finished 2024 24th in DVOA in the run game, per FTN Fantasy, and according to SIS, they finished with the 24th in Yards After Contact in the NFL on RB only runs.
At 20, this feels like the absolute limit of where Jeanty could go, but this would be perfect for the Broncos and Jeanty. Behind an offensive line that’s really good, and a playcaller that’s one of the best in the business.
Dallas Cowboys
If there’s an explosive skill position player available, the Cowboys should be in on it. The current Cowboy RB room is Javonte Williams, Miles Sanders and Deuce Vaughn–which is saying a lot ab out what their intentions might be come April. This is another commonly mocked spot for Jeanty, and it makes a lot of sense. With new Cowboys OC Klayton Adams coming from Arizona where a lot of gap scheme runs were used in their offense, Jeanty would make a lot of sense here. RG Zack Martin’s retirement throws a temporary wrench into things, but with how special Jeanty is as a runner and receiver, and Javonte Williams able to spell him for carries during the game, it would make a lot of sense here.
