Jaguars Looking For Tank Bigsby to Provide Solid Relief For Travis Etienne

The Jaguars' goal for Tank Bigsby this year? Help take some of the load off Travis Etienne's plate.

Jacksonville Jaguars running back Tank Bigsby (4) looks on before a NFL football game against the Kansas City Chiefs Sunday, Sept. 17, 2023 at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Fla. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union] / Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA

The Jacksonville Jaguars' offensive MVP for the 2023 season very well could have been running back Travis Etienne.

Etienne, the No. 25 pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, earned a vote for Offensive Player of the Year for the first time in his career after producing his second 1,000-yard season in as many years.

But while Etienne was one of the NFL's top running backs a year ago, the Jaguars have said at various points this offseason that they want to take some carries off of Etienne's plate. And the key to doing that very well could be the performance of second-year running back Tank Bigsby.

“Yeah, it's hard to put necessarily a rep count on it but you do want to keep him as healthy as you can throughout the season. That's why, we've talked about this too as a staff and myself, making sure Tank [Bigsby] gets opportunities to get out there and take some of the pounding off of Travis," Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson said on Monday.

Etienne finished 2023 with 1,008 yards (3.8 yards per carry) and 11 touchdowns, while also catching 58 passes for 476 yards and a touchdown.

Etienne posted at least two rushing touchdowns in three straight games from Week 5 to Week 7. He became the first player in franchise history to record multiple rushing touchdowns in three consecutive games in a season.

Etienne recorded 1,484 scrimmage yards in 2023, joining Maurice Jones-Drew as the only Jaguars to reach 1,000 scrimmage yards in their first two active NFL seasons. Etienne is the third player in Jaguars history to record 1,300 scrimmage yards in consecutive seasons.

"Again, just taking another step, year three with us in the offense and just seeing his growth. I think there's more out there that he can get yard-wise," Pederson said.

"It'll definitely be an emphasis utilizing him more so in the run game and making sure that those yards that are there that we're doing the right things, we're hitting the right holes, we're anticipating defenders and blocking schemes and all that kind of stuff. Then being able to take the wear and tear off him with Tank."

Bigsby, the No. 88 pick in last year's draft, didn't have a featured role as a rookie. After opening the season as the No. 2 running back, Bigsby ran into unlucky turnover issues early on and eventually fell into the No. 3 role behind D'Ernest Johnson.

Bigsby's rookie season ended with just 132 yards rushing (2.6 yards per rush) and two touchdowns, including just 15 carries in the last seven games of the season. But moving forward, he could be expected to see his role behind Travis Etienne change.

With Bigsby on the sidelines as a rookie, Etienne finished third in the NFL with 325 touches -- 70 more than the year previously. That clearly isn't what the Jaguars want to repeat in 2024, which will likely mean more touches and play-time for Bigsby.