One key factor that could help the Jacksonville Jaguars’ offense this season is having Travis Etienne in the lineup after he wasn’t able to take the field for the 2021 regular season as a rookie. The team clearly had big plans for him, however, he sustained a season-ending foot injury in the preseason that put things on hold.
After months of rehab, Etienne has made his return and has been able to take the field with his teammates for organized team activities. In the process, he’s been one of the team’s standout players, though most fans want to hold their judgment on him because the pads haven’t gone on yet.
However, the coaching staff is pleased with Etienne, including offensive coordinator Press Taylor. This week he was asked about his thoughts on how Etienne has looked, and like many others have noticed, Taylor said Etienne’s speed has been on display.
“The speed’s real.” Taylor said. ” I mean that was obviously something everybody knew coming out of college not having a chance to see a lot of the stuff he was able to do last year because he wasn’t able to play, so the speed’s very real. He did a good job of just showing understanding of the different roles we’re trying to see.
“We’re throwing him in all different positions just to see what he’s comfortable with, what he needs to work on as we move forward, give him plans moving further into summer coming back for training camp. But he’s been really receptive to everything. He’s shown an ability to grasp a lot of different things and show that he’s capable of doing things.”
Just as the Jags’ previous staff was planning to do, the current staff seems intrigued to see what Etienne can offer as a utility player, though his predominant role will be as a running back. Last week, CBS Sports reporter Jonathan Jones said Etienne was used solely as a pass-catcher in one practice session and looked impressive in the process.
After watching Etienne, Jones said he felt he saw a lot of Debo Samuel in him, who is widely known as one of the NFL’s best utility players. Others have compared Etienne to Alvin Kamara, who is constantly a threat to get his team six points whether he’s taking a handoff or catching a pass.
When asked about Etienne being compared to both players, Taylor said he wouldn’t mind Etienne having similar success, but added that his usage will vary by the team’s weekly opponent.
“We’ll take the success those guys have had no matter who it is, whether it’s Travis [Etienne Jr.] or any of those guys,” Taylor said. “I think it’s kind of going to be a case-by-case basis. Whatever’s going to give us the best opportunity to put Travis in positions to succeed is what we’re going to do, whether that’s him as a receiver coming in the backfield or as a running back leaving the backfield to be a receiver. Whatever that may be, I think that kind of evolves as the season goes or week by week even really.”
Fans will have to wait until training camp in July to see what Etienne looks like with their own eyes. However, it’s clear his staff and teammates like where he is at the moment and are hopeful that he’ll continue to impress heading into the 2022 season.