When Josh Jacobs practiced on Wednesday with his Las Vegas teammates for the first time since the end of last season, Raiders coach Josh McDaniels saw the same impact from the running back as he did in 2022, when the former Alabama ball-carrier led the NFL in rushing yards.

But for Jacobs, there’s a difference that makes him feel like a “super-hero.”

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As he announced in May, Jacobs will wear No. 8 in the 2023 season after having No. 28 on his jersey in his first four seasons with the Raiders.

“Just growing up, that was always just the number I feel like just always caught my eye,” Jacobs said last week. “I remember when I was in Little League, I had got my jersey, and I had like a 30 number, and I was like, ‘Man, naw.’ I don’t know. There’s something in that eight that makes me feel like a super-hero for real.”

After wearing No. 25 as a Crimson Tide freshman, Jacobs switched to his favorite number for the rest of his Alabama career as a sophomore. But when he broke into the NFL as the 24th pick in the 2019 draft, league rules made it illegal for a running back to wear No. 8.

The NFL changed its number requirements before the 2021 season, but the No. 8 was filled for the Raiders by quarterback Marcus Mariota.

When Mariota left for the Atlanta Falcons in 2022, Jacobs didn’t make the change to No. 8 because of an NFL rule that requires a player changing numbers to buy out the distribution inventory of jerseys with his old number – unless he provides a one-season notice of his intent to change.

“Obviously, I wanted to get it last year,” Jacobs said. “But they wanted to charge me 3.5 (million dollars) for it, so I was like, ‘Yeah, I’m not going to do that.’

“But, man, I mean, all my life that’s the number I’ve always worn. It’s just the number I feel like it brings out something different in me. Even in college, I feel like I took that leap in that number. It’s going to be fun to see what I can do with it. Try to make it a staple.”

RELATED: JOSH JACOBS PLANS TO HIT THE GROUND RUNNING WITH RAIDERS

The contract saga that started when the Raiders used their franchise tag for 2023 on Jacobs to keep him out of free agency in March finally ended last week when the running back signed a contract that guarantees him $10.091 million for the 2023 season – a $7.591 million base salary and a $2.5 million signing bonus. He also will earn $100,000 for every game that he’s on the game-day active roster and could get another $200,000 in incentive bonuses.

The Raiders are planning to have Jacobs ready to play when they kick off their 2023 regular-season schedule against the Denver Broncos at 3:25 p.m. CDT Sept. 10 at Empower Field at Mile High in Denver.

Daniels said Jacobs didn’t look behind after missing the offseason program, training camp and preseason.

“He’s come back ready to go, which I figured he would,” McDaniels said during a Saturday event for Las Vegas’ season-ticket holders. “Jumped right back in, and you just see the impact that he makes right way. It’s just different.

“He’s the best back that I’ve been around, and I’ve been coaching for 23 years, so he’s a special player and he’s a special guy. He has a special impact on our team when he’s here.”

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.