Travis

Etienne

Achane is mentioned as part of a major section of Alexander’s combine takeaways titled “A push for a running back,” starring Kenneth Walker and also featuring Travis Etienne and Rico Dowdle. But towards the very end, it notes that the Texans did trade for a back after missing out on the free-agent market for Saquon Barkley when they snagged Joe Mixon. We doubt that the Dolphins would part with Achane for something negligible — they’d likely require real draft compensation — but the situation certainly looks to be focused on the long-term there and Achane is entering the final year of his rookie contract.

Raanan reports players like Travis Etienne, Jeremiyah Love, and Kenneth Walker are among the players the Giants are reportedly interested in, while adding “there seems to be a clear focus on becoming a more physical run-heavy team.” The Giants saw last year’s rookie, Cam Skattebo, run for 101-410-5 in eight games before he suffered a season-ending ankle injury, but the team is hopeful he’ll be cleared in time for training camp. Still, the talent behind Skattebo is thin, but any big name-addition in the draft or free agency would undoubtedly limit the fantasy upside of both players in 2026. The Giants currently hold the No. 5 overall pick, but are up against a tight cap with just over $3.3 million currently available, per OverTheCap. They’ll have some work to do if they hope to land a big-name back in free agency.

Etienne will become an unrestricted free agent when free agency officially begins. This would be quite the fun pairing. The Chiefs’ offense, featuring RBs Kareem Hunt and Isiah Pacheco, averaged just 4.2 yards per carry during the regular season, ranking 20th in the NFL. Adding an explosive player like Etienne would be a significant upgrade. Both Hunt and Pacheco are set to become free agents as well.

“The figurative writing was on the wall for Etienne and [Devin] Lloyd in the last month when the Jaguars extended receiver Jakobi Meyers and left tackle Cole Van Lanen to ensure they wouldn’t hit the market,” O’Halloran writes, continuing: “Did the Jaguars choose Meyers/Van Lanen over Etienne/Lloyd? Ultimately, yes.” If Etienne does leave Jacksonville, O’Halloran believes Bhayshul Tuten will be the No. 1 back in 2026 with LeQuint Allen as the “No. 2/third-down back/kick returner.” Etienne isn’t much of a between-the-tackles pounder (see Trevor Lawrence’s red zone rushing role) and is probably a better committee back, but he might have a chance to find his way into a No. 1 role in free agency after a strong 2025 season.

Unlike his team, Etienne got to end a rebound season on a high note with over 100 yards from scrimmage and a score. He finished the regular season with 260 carries for 1,107 yards and seven scores. Etienne also juiced the fantasy numbers with six touchdowns through the air. He was the focal point of first-year head Liam Coen’s ground game and a crucial piece of the passing attack. Etienne is an unrestricted free agent, but it wouldn’t surprise anyone if the Jags make it a point to keep him in town. The 2025 season was Jacksonville’s best by regular season wins since 1999. GM James Gladstone will likely do his best to keep the core players on offense around for years to come. Etienne will slot in as a low-end RB1 for fantasy purposes if he sticks with the Jags.

He added two catches for 16 yards on three targets. All that volume sure looks better when you score, but Etienne played 48-of-69 Jaguars snaps, rarely giving LeQuint Allen (13 snaps) any room to operate as a backup. He wasn’t especially close to scoring, and took just two carries for three yards in the red zone. Etienne will remain on the RB1 line against the Titans in Week 18, a game the Jaguars will definitely want to win to secure the AFC South title.

Tuten was limited in practice throughout the week after recently undergoing surgery on his finger. The team downgraded him to out over the weekend. He has a shot at returning in Week 18 to get in some reps before the playoffs. Travis Etienne will see the bulk of the carries versus Indianapolis this week, putting him in the RB1 mix.

With Bhayshul Tuten (finger) done for the rest of the season, Etienne saw an uptick in usage against Denver. He accounted for 16 of the Jaguars backfield’s 20 running back carries and all four of the team’s running backs targets while running a pass route on 26 of Trevor Lawrence’s 46 drop backs. LeQuint Allen did see an inside-the-five rush, however, raising concerns about Etienne’s goal line role in Week 17. Etienne’s receiving touchdown was his fourth over the past two games. That can’t last, but his involvement in the pass game means Etienne won’t be sensitive to game script moving forward.

“He should be back for the playoffs,” writes NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo. Not that Tuten was threatening much playing time in the near term anyway for Travis Etienne, but this does set the Jaguars lead back with a Chase Brown-level of workload for the final three games of the regular season (and two games of fantasy playoffs for most leagues) against Denver, Indianapolis, and Tennessee. Tuten finishes the regular season with a 78/284/4 rushing line and added 10/79/2 through the air. He’s still the likely incumbent for this backfield in 2026 unless this season has convinced Jaguars decision makers that they actually need Etienne more than they believed six months ago.

You wouldn’t have expected the first three-score game of Etienne’s career to feature zero on the ground, but that’s what happened on Sunday in Jacksonville. This was somehow after Bhayshul Tuten notched the Jags backfield’s first receiving score, and after they already led 24-10 in the dying moments of the second quarter. Etienne then found the end zone from 20, eight and 45 yards out, with the 45-yarder a screen where Etienne found the sideline. The 20-yarder was a Trevor Lawrence dime at the goal line. Although he’s been providing better fantasy returns of late, Etienne has bettered 4.0 yards per carry just one time in seven games since the Jags’ bye week. The offense’s recent improvement will be put to the toughest of tests in a Week 16 road trip to Denver. Etienne will remain a usage-based RB2 for that one.