No player in the NFL has more touches through the first seven weeks of the season than the Jacksonville Jaguars’ Travis Etienne Jr.
Jaguars offensive coordinator Press Taylor said he wasn’t too worried about it and that the team will “continue to give the ball to our best players at all times.” Head coach Doug Pederson struck a slightly different chord, telling reporters that the team has “got to be mindful that we’re not overworking him.”
According to Etienne, it makes no difference.
“I’m here to win games, I don’t care about the workload,” Etienne said after practice Wednesday. “As long as we’re winning, I don’t care if I get two carries or 30. As long as we get the ‘W’ at the end of the day. I feel like that’s what I’m all about, that’s what I’m here for.”
Etienne, 24, averaged 12.9 carries and 2.1 receptions during his de facto rookie year in 2022 (he missed all of 2021 due to a Lisfranc injury). So far in 2023, he’s averaging 18.1 rushing attempts and 3.4 receptions.
While the sustainability of Etienne taking that many hits per game could be a concern, it’s not surprising that the running back isn’t among those thinking much about it. His philosophy in most things has been to worry about the present and allow the future to handle itself.
“I feel like the market is what the market is and for me, to go out there and get the best deal for myself, I have to come out here and work hard each and every day,” Etienne said in July when he was asked about the pay rate for NFL running backs.
“If I don’t produce or be productive, I’m not going to even be in that conversation or there won’t be anybody looking to pay me. The best thing I can do is keep my head down and keep working to win games for my football team.”
If Etienne scores at least two rushing touchdowns Sunday against the Pittsburgh Steelers, he’d become the first player since LaDainian Tomlinson in his record-breaking 2006 season to do it in four straight games.
