Raiders' Ashton Jeanty reveals drastic offseason sacrifice he made to get in better shape

Jeanty says he gave up sugar to get in better shape this offseason Jul 30, 2026 at 8:52 am ET • 1 min read Imagn Images Las Vegas Raiders running back Ashton Jeanty didn't have the most prolific rookie season. His 1,321 total yards and 10 total touchdowns paint a rosy picture of his production, but a deeper look reveals some efficiency issues. Jeanty, the No. 6 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, ran for only 975 yards on his 266 carries -- an average of just 3.7 a pop. He finished seventh in the league in rush attempts, but he was dead last in success rate out of the 49 backs with 100 or more carries, according to Tru Media. Of course, not all of this was Jeanty's fault. He played in arguably the worst offensive environment in the league, behind an offensive line that was an epic disaster and allowed him to be repeatedly hit behind the line of scrimmage. He finished 45th in yards before contact per carry, for example, as well as 49th in the share of his runs that gained zero or negative yards. He was better in yards after contact (24th) and did a good job of avoiding tackles (eighth), indicating that there was more on the bone for him to do if the line play in front of him had been better.Still, Jeanty doesn't feel he was at his best physically. He told CBS Sports' Bryant McFadden that he got in better shape this offseason by dropping sugar (specifically Sour Patch Kids) from his diet in order to get into better shape for his second NFL season."I love candy, all of that," Jeanty said. "Just really cutting that down, dialing it in more, for sure. Just working out, really building up my cardio, getting in better shape. I didn't feel like I was in good enough shape last year. Being able to play longer than everybody and be more physical longer is very important at running back." Jeanty should be in a better environment this season with a new head coach in Klint Kubiak, a pair of new offensive linemen (and specifically a new center in Tyler Linderbaum) and a presumably healthy Brock Bowers. The Raiders are surely hoping for better quarterback play out of Kirk Cousins and/or Fernando Mendoza than they got out of Geno Smith, as well. If he can parlay the better environment and new diet into more production on a per-touch basis, he can show great improvement over what he did during his rookie year.