Jaguars RB Fantasy Outlook: Should You Draft Travis Etienne Jr., Tank Bigsby, and D’Ernest Johnson?

The Jacksonville Jaguars are in a key year with their core of skill players, including running back Travis Etienne Jr. Time is running out to take a step forward in the AFC South under the current regime.

Etienne has been the workhorse of the Jacksonville RB depth chart, but should the presence of Tank Bigsby and D’Ernest Johnson make fantasy football manager rethink their draft strategy?

Let’s take a look at the fantasy outlooks for Etienne, Bigsby, and Johnson in 2024.

Travis Etienne Jr.’s Fantasy Outlook and Projections

• PPR fantasy Points: 266.4 (215.6 Non-PPR)
• Rushing Yards: 1165.5
• Rushing Touchdowns: 8.7
• Receptions: 50.8
• Receiving Yards: 432.8
• Receiving Touchdowns: 0.5

Etienne’s appeal is obvious. In the modern NFL, there are no more than a handful of running backs who play on all three downs. Etienne is one of them.

On the surface, last season’s performance looks quite excellent. Etienne averaged 16.6 fantasy points per game last year, finishing as the overall RB7. Fantasy managers taking him at his RB11, No. 39 overall ADP would sign for that right now.

While Etienne was a much better fantasy asset in 2023 than he was in 2022, his efficiency took a serious hit. Etienne went from 5.1 yards per carry to 3.8. He only averaged 4.6 yards per touch, and just 3.7% of his carries went for 15+ yards.

This season, the Jaguars will likely once again strive to give Etienne a lighter workload. Once again, though, I’m not sure they have the personnel to do it.

Last season, Etienne saw a 76% opportunity share, sixth in the league. It’s reasonable to project that to drop a bit, but he should still be among the league leaders.

The Jaguars don’t really have any obvious playmakers who command the ball. Receivers Christian Kirk and Brian Thomas Jr. are solid and perhaps both very good. But neither is a game-breaking player. As a result, there should still be plenty of work for Etienne both on the ground and through the air.

Etienne is my RB10, one spot below his ADP, and firmly in the mix for me at cost.

– Jason Katz, Fantasy Football Analyst

Tank Bigsby’s Fantasy Outlook and Projections

• PPR fantasy Points: 108.8 (104.7 Non-PPR)
• Rushing Yards: 535.8
• Rushing Touchdowns: 8.1
• Receptions: 4.1
• Receiving Yards: 24.4
• Receiving Touchdowns: 0.1

Etienne has yet to miss a game during his NFL career and without definitive clarity behind him, he’s not the type of running back I’m looking to handcuff.

Bigsby and D’Ernest Johnson split 102 touches down the middle last season, neither showing much upside in their limited opportunities. If Etienne were to go down, Jacksonville would likely put their fate in the hands of Trevor Lawrence, something that doesn’t work out favorably for Bigby and his one reception as a rookie.

– Kyle Soppe, Fantasy Football Analyst

D’Ernest Johnson’s Fantasy Outlook and Projections

• PPR fantasy Points: 64.6 (50.2 Non-PPR)
• Rushing Yards: 294.5
• Rushing Touchdowns: 1.3
• Receptions: 14.4
• Receiving Yards: 126.9
• Receiving Touchdowns: 0.1

You likely remember this game for his run with the 2021 Browns (100 carries) and his 4.6 yards per carry across his 182 career carries is not nothing. That said, like Bigby, there really isn’t a clean path to meaningful work. He did catch 10 of 12 targets last season, versatility that would make him marginally more appealing in the event Etienne were to miss time, but this is a backfield that would no be represented inside my top 35 if the starter were to miss time.

– Kyle Soppe, Fantasy Football Analyst