Jacksonville Jaguars RB Travis Etienne, Jr.
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Jacksonville Jaguars RB Travis Etienne, Jr.
The Jacksonville Jaguars have a new regime in town. New general manager James Gladstone and head coach Liam Coen have been pretty clear that they are bringing a fresh perspective and new attitude to the team. As we’ve seen in sports for years, when the new boss comes in, there is a chance that they are going to make changes and bring in their own people.
In short: just because you worked for the previous folks, doesn’t mean you’ll work here now.
And that could be the case with 2021 first-round pick Travis Etienne, Jr. According to Jeremy Fowler of ESPN, the new guys in charge aren’t overly enthralled with the performance of their “star” running back.
“And watch for fourth-round running back Bhayshul Tuten to make an impact,” Fowler writes. “I’ve talked to multiple people in the league who believe the new regime is not so high on Travis Etienne Jr., and Tank Bigsby has a fumbling issue.”
That doesn’t sound like a ringing endorsement of the running back room.
Etienne has underperformed
In the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft, the Jaguars came away with Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence and later picked up his college teammate Etienne, Jr. with the 25th pick in the round. Surely, they felt great following that draft because they got their potential franchise signal caller and their backfield horse in the same round.
And, anyone that watched the two of them at Clemson surely had to be excited. Lawrence looked like a sure-fire NFL stud-to-be and while the reviews on him are mixed so far in his NFL career, he signed a five-year, $275 million contract before the 2024 NFL season, so he isn’t going anywhere.
Etienne, however, hasn’t been so lucky. Yes, the Jaguars picked up his fifth-year option in 2024, but that’s a far cry from a big second contract that ties the Jaguars’ boat to Etienne’s mooring. And so far, it’s tough to imagine that extending Etienne is on the Jaguars’ radar.
In his rookie season, Etienne suffered a Lisfranc injury and missed the entire year. (FUN FACT: The name “Lisfranc” comes from one of Napoleon’s field surgeons, Jacques Lisfranc de St. Martin. It’s a mid-foot injury that was suffered by many in the cavalry when they’d fall off the horse and get their foot tied up in the stirrup). He rebounded from the injury to have a strong 2022 season, rushing for 1,125 yards and five touchdowns for a robust 5.1-yard average. That’s fantastic! But, it didn’t last.
In 2023, he rushed for 1,008 yard and 11 touchdowns, which seems like a really nice year, but he averaged just 3.8 yards per carry. And, 2024 didn’t get better as he ran for 558 yards and two touchdowns in 15 games with a 3.7-yard average. NFL teams don’t want their RB1 toting the rock for less than a four-yard average.
And, Etienne hasn’t exactly passed the eyeball test as anyone who watches London NFL games can attest. He just doesn’t look like the superstar that he was in college.
Jaguars would like to upgrade the position
Former Jaguars’ general manager Trent Baalke was the one who picked up Etienne’s fifth-year option (not Gladstone). It’s not surprising since he missed his rookie year and he’s shown flashes so far in his career. Etienne isn’t a bust by any stretch, but that also doesn’t mean that he’s good enough for what the new regime wants to do.
“To go into playoff games and to go do it, you’ve got to be able to run the football and stop the run, first and foremost,” Coen said at his first press conference.
“How do we make Trevor Lawrence and this offense as dynamic and explosive as we can be? We’ve got to build it around him as well. We’ve got to make every part of this about improvement, and he will be a part of that process,” Coen said.
Translation: We need more from our running game.
They’ve already added Travis Hunter to pair with second-year standout receiver Brian Thomas, Jr., so that should help Lawrence with passing weapons. So, Fowler may be correct here in that the Jags are going to look for a spark from Tuten, the Virginia Tech rookie who was drafted in the fourth round in 2025.
Lance Zierlein of NFL.com wrote up his profile prior to the draft.
“If you spend too much time focusing on the small inconsistencies of Tuten’s college game, you run the risk of overlooking the match he is for the pro game. He’s an explosive athlete with average size but a compact frame. He has elite straight-line speed and easy hips to make sudden cuts and turns. He’s fairly average at reading the front and running with early decisiveness but creates with wiggle, power and speed. Drops and fumbles are a concern, but runners with his contact balance, power and home run speed put tremendous stress on defenses over four quarters. Tuten could become a starting-caliber back with three-down value.”
Of course, the Jaguars could always add a free agent and/or make a trade, but surely they are hoping that Etienne bounces back and hopefully they can get something from Tuten.