Doug Pederson: Travis Etienne Has a Foot Sprain, Should Play vs. Lions
Jacksonville Jaguars running back Travis Etienne is still on track to play in Week 13 vs. the Detroit Lions after sustaining a foot injury on Sunday.
Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson described Etienne's injury, which occurred after five plays and two carries in a 28-27 win over the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday, as a foot sprain. He said it occurred on the same surgically repaired foot that Etienne injured last season as a rookie, but he is still set to play vs. the Lions in six days.
“I think so. Barring anything crazy this week, yeah. I think he’ll be fine and be ready to go," Pederson said on Monday when asked if Etienne would be available on Sunday.
Etienne missed all of his rookie season with a Lisfranc injury but had been completely injury-free this season up until this Sunday. But Etienne was not in any walking boot or with crutches in the locker room Sunday, telling Jaguar Report after the game that he will be fine by next Sunday.
"Yes, sir. Yes, sir. We'll be straight by next weekend," Etienne said.
"I'm feeling good. Got the team win, can't ask for much more than that."
Etienne's injury was a scary sight for the Jaguars, with the star second-year running back leaving the game for the locker room before quickly returning to the sidelines in his full uniform. Despite never being ruled out, Pederson and the Jaguars opted for Etienne to watch from the sidelines to help protect him.
“He’s going to be okay. He just got rolled up on his surgically repaired foot," Pederson said. "Just caution and precaution, just wanted to make sure that he was and will be one hundred percent moving forward, so we were just more precautionary in that game than anything else.”
"He got his treatment today and it’s more too, sometimes, a piece of mind with players, especially coming off of a repair like that. Just rest their minds a little bit that everything is going to be okay moving forward.”
With Etienne sidelined, the Jaguars turned to backup running backs JaMycal Hasty and Snoop Conner. Hasty rushed 12 times for 28 yards but also caught five passes for 67 yards and a touchdown, while Conner added 11 yards on three carries.
And while the Jaguars didn't give Etienne another snap after he left the game, Pederson made it clear on Monday that the former first-round pick likely could have still played if it was absolutely necessary.
“I mean, yeah. We have that discussion right away. They took him into the dressing room, checked him out, they might’ve even tweaked some shoes and different things to see," Pederson said.
"Then, once he came back out, it was just a matter of having conversations with him. You think about putting him back in, but at that time, we knew it was probably not the best thing for him as a player and his health. We just made the decision to keep him out of the game.”
