The Las Vegas Raiders kept running back Josh Jacobs from reaching free agency last offseason by using their franchise tag on the former Alabama standout. But because the tag didn’t result in a long-term contract with Jacobs, the ball-carrier reached free agency earlier this month and signed with the Green Bay Packers.

“Don’t like to see it,” Raiders coach Antonio Pierce said about Jacobs’ departure. “I made it known – the heartbeat, a Raider through and through. But as we all know it’s a business. You hear that line, but it’s true: Money talks, BS walks. He had to do what’s best for him and his family, and I wish him the best.

“But that one hurt.”

Jacobs joined Green Bay for a four-year, $48 million contract that included a $12.5 million signing bonus, which is the guaranteed portion of the contract.

“It’s the nature of the beast,” Pierce said on Monday while attending the NFL’s annual meeting in Orlando, Florida. “Every team deals with it. You got to move on and move forward.

“The good thing about it is Zamir (White) got a great opportunity last year. We’ve seen what he’s able to do, and now he’s going to be the frontrunner along with Alex Mattison.”

A first-round draft choice in 2019, Jacobs spent five seasons with the Raiders, and his 5,545 rushing yards rank third in franchise history behind Marcus Allen’s 8,545 and Mark van Eeghen’s 5,907. Jacobs won the Jim Brown Award as the NFL’s leading rusher in the 2022 season, when he also topped the league in yards from scrimmage.

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White ran for 451 yards and one touchdown on 104 carries last season. He started four games that Jacobs missed with an injury. The Raiders added Alexander Mattison in free agency after he ran for 700 yards on 180 carries for the Minnesota Vikings in 2023, when he did not score a touchdown.

Las Vegas did not get Jacobs signed until about two weeks before the kickoff of the 2023 season. He still started the opening game, but his output dropped to 805 rushing yards and 1,101 yards from scrimmage as he missed the final four games of the season with a quadriceps injury.

As the first-team All-Pro running back in 2022, Jacobs had 1,653 rushing yards and 2,053 yards from scrimmage.

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