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The Jacksonville Jaguars have been one of the surprise teams so far in 2022. Doug Pederson was brought in and QB Trevor Lawrence has improved in his second season under center. The offense overall has been much better, though that isn’t because of RB Travis Etienne Jr. He missed all of last season due to injury and entered training camp expected to play a big role in the backfield. Instead, James Robinson has picked up where he left off. See look at whether or not you should drop Etienne in fantasy football.
Fantasy outlook: Jaguars RB Travis Etienne Jr.
Through four games here’s what Etienne has produced so far:
Rushing: 34 carries, 144 yards
Receiving: 8 catches on 11 targets, 81 yards
With those numbers, Etienne is ranked 37th in PPR fantasy scoring for running backs on ESPN. So he’s just inside the top-40 at the position. It’s not a complete disaster but considering where Etienne was being drafted, it leaves much to be desired. The thing is, Etienne isn’t too far behind James Robinson in terms of snaps; Etienne is at 119, while Robinson is at 145. That’s seven more per game.
The bigger issue is Week 4. The Jaguars lost to the Eagles and had a 14-0 lead at one point early on. Etienne got eight carries for 32 yards. He didn’t get any work in the passing game, which is concerning. Overall in four games, Etienne and Robinson have 18 targets, 14 catches and 114 receiving yards. Jacksonville isn’t funneling targets through the backfield. Plus, there are four receivers with at least 99 yards. Most of the action from Lawrence is going to Christian Kirk and Zay Jones. That limits the upside for Etienne.
Verdict
I don’t think Etienne is droppable just yet. If he doesn’t get work in the passing game in Week 5, sure, explore other options. The thing is, there were a bunch of injuries this past week that should make a few RBs quality pickups. If you can grab one of those guys to replace Etienne, go for it. If they aren’t available or you don’t think you can get them in the waiver order, keep Etienne. He could turn things around. The fact the Jaguars offense is improved helps. He’s worth rostering if you have enough quality RBs.