Jacksonville Jaguars running back Travis Etienne Jr. has made it clear that he feels ready to return to action after missing almost all of Week 12 due to a foot injury. The coaches aren’t making any guarantees, though.
“He certainly insists he’s playing,” Jaguars offensive coordinator Press Taylor said of Etienne on Thursday. “We’re going to trust [vice president of player health Jeff Ferguson] and the medical staff in that department, but that’s something we’ve gone through, it feels like a couple times this season, where a guy is kind of a day-to-day decision.
“We continue to build the plan in hopes that that guy is there, but obviously there’s contingencies for if that guy’s not going to make it.”
Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson expressed a similar sentiment Wednesday, telling reporters that the team doesn’t want to put Etienne back in the lineup until the staff is “sure he’s 100 percent.”
Etienne, 23, had only two carries against the Baltimore Ravens before he exited to the locker room. He was ruled questionable to return, but stayed on the sideline for the rest of the game while JaMycal Hasty took the majority of the snaps in the Jaguars backfield.
After the game, Pederson said that Etienne could’ve returned to the game, but Jaguars coaches elected to keep the back on the sideline out of an abundance of caution.
Etienne has 728 rushing yards, 202 receiving yards, and four touchdowns so far this season. He missed his entire rookie season due to a Lisfranc injury that required surgery to repair. Pederson said Monday that Etienne’s current injury is to the same foot, but is unrelated to the Lisfranc joint.