CBS Sports ranks Travis Etienne a top-20 running back in the NFL

Travis Etienne Jr. has been named one of the 20 best running backs in the NFL, according to CBS.

Etienne has had a rocky start to his professional career after sustaining a season-ending injury right before the start of his rookie year. However, since his return, he’s had back-to-back seasons with over 1,000 yards rushing, averaging 4.4 yards per carry.

This season, the former Tiger comes in at No. 11 in CBS Sports’ preseason NFL running back rankings. Garrett Podell writes that his total yards from scrimmage (1,484) was the fifth-best among running backs, but one thing holds him back: The Jags’ offensive line.

Podell wrote,

The problem here is his efficiency plummeted in 2023 with his yards per carry declining from 5.1 as a rookie (1,125 rushing yards on 220 carries) to 3.8 last season (1,008 rushing yards on 267 carries). Not all of that is his fault, to be fair. Jacksonville was assessed a 40.6 run-blocking grade by Pro Football Focus, the second worst in the entire NFL last season ahead of only the Los Angeles Chargers and their 40.1 PFF run-blocking grade. The poor blocking could also contribute to the reason why Etienne had to avoid as many tackles as he did, and why his stuff rate of 25.5% was the second highest in the NFL among 49 running backs with at last 100 carries, trailing only Browns running back Jerome Ford’s 27.5% figure.

Etienne could have a better year with who Jacksonville has signed in the offseason, but it depends on the development of the younger OL starters, too.

Here’s the all 20 on CBS Sports’ rankings: