The Jacksonville Jaguars are banking on an offensive renaissance, and the running back position is key to Liam Coen’s offense.
Fourth-round draft pick Bhayshul Tuten out of Virginia Tech has been impressive in the preseason. He ran for 24 yards and a touchdown in Week 1 against the Pittsburgh Steelers and continued to impress in practice leading up to the Jags’ game against the New Orleans Saints.
How Is Bhayshul Tuten Doing So Far This Preseason?
On Sunday against the Saints, he ran 10 times for 35 yards and punched it in from three yards out to score his second preseason touchdown. He’s keeping the momentum going during an intense training camp for the rookie.
.@Jaguars rookie RB Bhayshul Tuten punches it in for the score
Watch on @NFLNetwork
Stream on @NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/FXmUxynghm— NFL (@NFL) August 17, 2025
He’s mainly seen time against second and third stringers, but he’s been impressive.
A few of Bhayshul Tuten’s touches in his first preseason game.
Love the base that Tuten runs with. He’s got some spring in his step and runs with good toughness. Great finish on his TD. pic.twitter.com/JwaxgpUQsB
— Nate Tice (@Nate_Tice) August 13, 2025
Travis Etienne Jr. and Tank Bigsby continue to get the reps with the first team, but if Tuten keeps this up, it’s going to be hard for Coen not to at least take a peek at what he can do with the first team.
Etienne had a career low of 558 rushing yards and two touchdowns with a 3.7 YPC in 2024, so it’s not as if he has an iron grip on the RB1 spot.
Bigsby had a solid 2024, running for 766 yards on 168 carries with seven rushing touchdowns. However, he didn’t do anything to separate himself as a clear-cut lead back.
Tuten is young, raw, and fast. He ran a 4.32 40-yard dash at the NFL combine. He has a low center of gravity and a strong lower body. He’s dangerous in open space and is best in zone-blocking schemes, where he can identify holes, cut back effectively, and use his vision to find daylight.
He has good instincts and a high football IQ and can be valuable in the passing game, which could give him early opportunities as a third-down back.
Since he’s a bit small, he could be classified as a liability in pass protection until he adds more upper-body strength. He had some fumble issues in college, so as long as that doesn’t crop up as a problem, he can stay in the coaching staff’s good graces.
He flashes moments of brilliance, but the NFL is about consistency, and Tuten will need to earn the opportunity to prove he can be an effective down-to-down back.
