Aside from a few years with Maurice Jones-Drew and Leonard Fournette’s rookie season in 2017, Jacksonville’s skill-position players are rarely highly sought-after fantasy football commodities. But with a brand-new offense, courtesy of coach Urban Meyer (one of the primary architects of the modern spread offense) and a potential superstar franchise quarterback in Trevor Lawrence, you can expect that to change.
This season may be a bit of a transition as Lawrence attempts to learn the ropes of running an NFL offense. Regardless of how far along he gets in his development as a rookie, though, the unit as a whole should be much more productive in 2021.
With that in mind, who should Jacksonville’s top fantasy football options be? Players like James Robinson, who led the NFL in carry percentage last season, and receiver D.J. Chark, who is sure to be one of Lawrence’s favorite targets, are solid options.
But according to Bleacher Report’s Brent Sobleski, Travis Etienne, the rookie running back the Jaguars selected with the 25th overall pick, is the top fantasy breakout candidate in 2021.
A running back who receives a significant target rate in the passing game is the golden goose of fantasy football. Christian McCaffrey and Alvin Kamara changed how everyone viewed the position because both can be legitimate lead backs while simultaneously serving as their team’s No. 1 target.
Travis Etienne may be cast in the same mold.
“He’s the Percy Harvin, we’re hoping. I mean, those are big shoes, when you say something like that,” Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Urban Meyer said during an interview on 1010XL 92.5 FM JAX Sports Radio (h/t the Spun’s Chris Rosvoglou). “But you’ve got Parris Campbell, you’ve got Curtis Samuel, those types of players. Offensive coordinators love those kind of guys who can do multiple things.”
The Jaguars also have James Robinson, and he’s no slouch. But Etienne’s utilization in the passing game should more than make up for any lost carries he experiences.
Given the fact that Meyer and the rest of the coaching staff have referred to Etienne as a “slash” player, it seems very likely that he will occupy a role similar to that of Christian McCaffrey and Alvin Kamara, though perhaps not quite as productive.
Either way, as Sobleski mentions, a running back who plays a major role in the passing game is the most desirable target in fantasy football, especially in leagues that follow Points Per Reception (PPR) format. Etienne was a factor in Clemson’s passing game in college, but not nearly to the extent it seems the Jags plan to use him. If he can manage that change well, he’ll be a major sleeper in fantasy football drafts.