Latest news with #TravisEtienne
Forbes
24-05-2025
- Sport
- Forbes
3 Running Backs To Buy In Dynasty Fantasy Football (May)
Prior to the 2025 NFL Draft, I wrote an article on 3 running backs to buy in dynasty fantasy football. It seems like that was very well received, so my plan is to give you guys a new and updated list every month going forward. With the NFL Draft shaking things up, it's time to reevaluate. Tank Bigsby and Rhamondre Stevenson were sleepers that didn't work out, but J.K. Dobbins is still a great buy. Below, we'll be going over three running backs who are valued way too low in dynasty fantasy football. The baseline rankings that we'll use for this list are from Keep Trade Cut. Bhayshul Tuten is a great value in dynasty right now. On paper, the Jacksonville Jaguars situation doesn't look great. Right now, you have Travis Etienne and Tank Bigsby in front of him, which is a worry. However, Etienne is set to hit free agency in 2026 and Bigsby wasn't drafted by the current regime. New head coach Liam Coen was only a part of the Jaguars when Tuten was drafted, meaning he likely had input there. Even though Bigsby is a solid player, he'll likely just be the secondary back until 2027, when his contract is up. Tuten is a super explosive back on an offense that has a ton of potential with Travis Hunter, Brian Thomas Jr and Trevor Lawrence. When looking at two PFF numbers, Tuten had a 143.2 elusive rating and 4.4 yards after contact per attempt. The main concern with Tuten is that he had nine total fumbles in 2023 and 2024. That's a big concern, but if Tuten can clean that up, he's poised to be a star in the NFL. In both redraft and dynasty formats, Jaydon Blue is a great player to own. I'll keep this a bit shorter because I talked about Blue in my 'Late Round Running Backs To Draft' article, which you can find here. The takeaway from my Blue breakdown is that the Cowboys are a good offense with a wide open path for a lead running back to emerge. On top of that, Blue looked good in a small sample at Texas. Per PFF, Blue had a 113.1 elusive rating, which was near the top percentile in college football and you can say the same about his yards after contact per attempt at 3.83. At the price of RB37, it wouldn't shock me at all if Blue becomes a top 24 dynasty running back if he wins the starting job in Dallas. Since coming into the NFL, Kendre Miller has been disappointing. After getting day two draft capital, many expected Miller to take the starting role from Alvin Kamara at some point. Or, at the very least, have a contributing role. Due to a mix between injuries and other issues, Miller has failed to run for more than 200 yards in either of his first two seasons. That said, the day two hit rate for running backs is fairly strong. According to data from DynastyFFDino on Reddit, third round running backs have a 35% chance of becoming an RB2. If Miller has an RB2 season, his value will skyrocket from RB64. In that case, even if you don't believe in Miller, you'll get a massive value win. I've watched Miller at TCU and he passed the eye test, but another way to verify this is with PFF. Miller had an 88.5 PFF run grade, 3.64 yards after contact per attempt and a 119.9 elusive rating. Even after a disappointing few years, the only back that Miller really has to compete with is a 6th round rookie, Devin Neal.
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Jacksonville Jaguars could wind up trading first-round pick on rookie contract
This year, the Jacksonville Jaguars got aggressive and traded up to select Travis Hunter with their first-round pick. But four years ago, the Jaguars selected both Trevor Lawrence and Travis Etienne in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft. Now, four years later, ESPN's Jeremy Fowler's sources indicate that the new Jaguars regime reportedly isn't a big fan of Etienne. That could make him a potential cut or trade candidate this season. 'Watch for fourth-round running back Bhayshul Tuten to make an impact. 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.' ESPN's Jeremy Fowler on Travis Etienne Advertisement As previously noted, the Jaguars drafted Etienne in the same year they added Lawrence too. Not only have they been teammates for four seasons in the NFL, they both starred at Clemson, helping win a College Football National Championship. While trading one of Lawrence's closest friends on the team could rub the Jaguars' franchise player the wrong way, Etienne is heading into the final year of his rookie contract. Thus, the team could opt to shop him around instead of paying out the full $6.1 million cap hit. Keep in mind, the Jaguars just got a new general manager this past offseason, opting to hire James Gladstone away from the Los Angeles Rams, so changes could certainly be afoot. Plus, the Jaguars didn't just draft Tuten in the fourth, they also added LeQuint Allen in the seventh round of April's NFL Draft. Related: Top 2025 NFL Rookie of the Year candidates: Ashton Jeanty and Abdul Carter start as ROTY favorites
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Jacksonville Jaguars' first-round pick listed as potential cap casualty
After moving on from general manager Trent Baalke and head coach Doug Pederson, there's a new regime leading the Jacksonville Jaguars into the 2025 season. Now, with James Gladstone assembling the roster and Liam Coen calling the shots as head coach, the Jaguars hope for better results than their 4-13 record in 2024. Many new players have arrived in Duval and by the time the roster is trimmed down from 90 to 53 players, the Jaguars' roster will look much different in 2025. They may even have a new starting running back. Advertisement Recently, Bleacher Report's Kristopher Knox named the 'best player who could still be cut' from each roster, and when it came to the Jaguars, he named starting running back Travis Etienne. Though, he cautions that if it does come down to cutting Etienne, Jacksonville would likely try trading the former first-round pick first. 'The Jacksonville Jaguars would save no money by releasing running back Travis Etienne Jr., who is set to play on the fully-guaranteed fifth-year option. However, new head coach Liam Coen may simply not want Etienne in his offense. 'I've talked to multiple people in the league who believe the new regime is not so high on Travis Etienne Jr.,' ESPN's Jeremy Fowler wrote on May 7. The Jags drafted both Bhayshul Tuten and LeQuint Allen Jr., so there's a very real chance they look to move on from Etienne—though, they'd almost certainly try trading him first.' Bleacher Report on Travis Etienne If the Jaguars do ultimately realize they prefer a backfield that's led by Tank Bigsby, 2025 fourth-round pick Bhayshul Tuten, and 2024 fifth-round pick Keilan Robinson, then Etienne should hold some level of trade value. Yet, it likely won't be a big trade return. One potential hurdle that could complicate trade negotiations is the fact that Etienne is set to earn $6.1 million in 2025, the final year of his rookie contract. That could be too rich for other teams to consider. Yet, taking a chance on the former first-round pick could be too enticing to pass up on. Related: NFL hopes for more isolated Netflix-only games in near future Related Headlines
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Explosive but Inefficient: The Travis Etienne Conundrum
On the surface, Travis Etienne looks like everything a modern NFL team wants in a running back. He's fast, elusive, dangerous in the open field, and capable of turning a routine handoff into a house call. For a while, he looked like one of the few bright spots for the Jacksonville Jaguars - a rare spark in an offense that too often has flickered. But beneath the highlights and the big-play potential lies a troubling truth: Etienne simply hasn't been efficient. His running style and production don't match the kind of consistency this offense needs, and with a new coaching staff, it's fair to ask if his time in Jacksonville is running out. (Jim Rassol-Imagn Images) When the Jaguars selected Etienne in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft - the same draft they selected his college teammate, Trevor Lawrence, first overall - it felt like the offense was being in Clemson's image. The two had chemistry, and Etienne brought a versatile, game-breaking skill set. Even after missing his entire rookie season with a Lisfranc injury, he came back in 2022 and posted over 1,100 yards rushing and five touchdowns, showing flashes of why the team chose him in the first round. Advertisement There were games where he looked like a future star: 156 yards against Denver in London, back-to-back 100+ yard games down the stretch, and a playoff-saving run against the Chargers to ice the game. Etienne wasn't just bouncing back, he was breaking out. Despite the excitement, Etienne's overall efficiency has never caught up to his potential. In 2023 and 2024, his yards per carry hovered closer to 3.8 than the elite 5.0 mark many top-tier backs achieve. He remained a threat in open space, but too often, those explosive plays masked an underlying problem: inconsistency. According to league-wide advanced metrics, Etienne ranked in the bottom third of starting running backs in both Success Rate and EPA per rush in 2024. Over 40% of his carries went for two yards or fewer, a sign that he wasn't consistently putting the offense in manageable down-and-distance situations. Even more concerning: in short-yardage situations, he struggled mightily. Whether on third-and-one or inside the five-yard line, Etienne rarely moved the pile. He's just not a power runner, and the Jaguars' red-zone offense suffered because of it. Advertisement Etienne was also solid as a dual-threat weapon, but his receiving game hasn't developed into what many expected. His targets have dropped, and when the ball has come his way, he has struggled with drops and inefficiency after the catch. Part of the issue lies in his style. Etienne is a horizontal runner, he often looks to bounce runs outside and for the home run. While that works occasionally, it also leads to negative plays, especially behind a mediocre offensive line that doesn't consistently create a push. Compare him to other backs behind similar lines, like Chase Brown in Cincinnati or Joe Mixon in Houston, and the contrast is clear. Those backs often manufacture yards after contact and wear down defenses. Etienne too often goes down on first contact or gets strung out to the sideline for minimal gain. With new head coach Liam Coen stepping in, the Jaguars are likely to shift toward a more traditional, downhill scheme-think zone and gap concepts that require decisive, one-cut runners who get upfield quickly. That's not Etienne's game. Advertisement Coen's offenses have thrived with backs who hit the hole hard, protected the quarterback on third downs, and can be a consistent threat in the passing game. Etienne has struggled in pass protection, which limits his third-down value in a scheme that places a premium on protecting the passer. With the recent additions of Bhayshul Tuten and LeQuint Allen Jr. in the NFL draft, Etienne could find himself phased out of the backfield rotation. And with his rookie deal nearing its end, that's a problem. It's not that Etienne can't contribute. He can. He just might be better suited for a situational role - think Tony Pollard before he became the starter in Dallas or Raheem Mostert in Miami. The problem is, situational players don't get second contracts from rebuilding teams; they get replaced. Travis Etienne's highlight runs will always get replayed on Sundays, but the Jaguars don't need just highlights-they need consistency and reliability. With the always average at best and consistently below average Trevor Lawrence entering his make-or-break window under the new regime, Jacksonville can't afford to hang onto a back who, much like their quarterback, doesn't elevate the offense consistently. The Jaguars drafted Etienne to be the future once upon a time. But the future is now and a brand new future has been recently drafted in Tuten and Allen. It is time to move on to a future without Etienne.
