Following a 3–14 record and a season embroiled in scandal, the Jaguars are looking to rebuild following the turmoil.
Travis Etienne, one of Jacksonville’s first round picks in the 2021 NFL draft, missed the tumultuous season due to an ankle injury. When asked if a part of him was glad he missed this past season on Tuesday, he grinned and gave an extremely honest answer.
“Nah, definitely,” he said. “That’s just the human element of it. Just seeing it results, you’re definitely like, ‘Phew, if there was any year to miss, I missed a great one.’”
The 23-year-old running back suffered a season-ending Lisfranc injury in his left foot during the Jaguars’ preseason Week 2 matchup against the Saints. The Clemson standout underwent surgery, and watched from the sidelines all season long as Jacksonville’s abysmal season was capped off with the December firing of former head coach Urban Meyer.
In Meyer’s short-lived tenure at helm, he was accused of kicking Jaguars kicker Josh Lambo, allegedly fostering a ‘toxic’ work environment and was reportedly unfamiliar with some of the NFL’s biggest names, including Rams’ Aaron Donald.
Etienne was able to have a different perspective from other players on the team due to being out.
“I definitely had a different perspective,” Etienne said. “I felt like I was looking at it from a fan standpoint. Just being here each and every day, I just felt like I was a fan who was in a room with the players basically. So, I definitely had a different perspective [and] standpoint and I got to see the ins and outs, and seeing like: what to do, what not to do, how to react in certain situations, when not to. So, I just felt like I just kind of grew mentally all last year.”
When asked about his timeline to return to the game, the 25th overall pick said he feels “really close” to being ready for this summer’s training camp and is waiting to be cleared by doctors.
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