Key question facing Tuten, Rodriguez, Jaguars' RB room in training camp

With training camp drawing closer, we will be highlighting the one big question that faces each of the Jacksonville Jaguars’ position groups.

Next up is the running back position that has to replace Travis Etienne’s 1,100-plus yards of production with him now in New Orleans.

So, of course, the question then is, how will the Jaguars go about accomplishing that?

Etienne was the clear No. 1 option out of the backfield last season for the Jaguars; however, this year, that workload could look a bit different. The assumption is that we will see more of a committee approach, with Bhayshul Tuten and Chris Rodriguez taking the bulk of the carries, while LeQuint Allen continues to see snaps during passing downs.

For an idea of what these splits could look like, the 2024 Tampa Bay Buccaneers could offer some insight. Liam Coen was the offensive coordinator that year and we saw Bucky Irving carry the ball 224 times, Rachaad White 145 times, and Sean Tucker had 50 carries.

Rodriguez brings a physical presence to the position, while Tuten has home run potential with his speed. Both have the ability to create opportunities beyond what is made available by the blockers. Allen is already a top-notch pass protector and should see more opportunities as a pass-catcher.

One specific area where both Tuten and Rodriguez could give the Jaguars’ run game a boost is in their ability to create, which, as ESPN’s Seth Walder wrote about earlier this offseason, is an area of improvement for the Jacksonville running back room.

Improved offensive line play in the ground game will obviously be important when it comes to determining the success of this unit, but the ability of the running backs on the roster to step into larger roles and produce right away will play a key factor in determining how good the Jaguars’ offense is in 2026.