Jaguars Mailbag: What Do We Make of Travis Etienne's Role?
Each week during this year's offseason, Jaguar Report will take Jacksonville Jaguars-related questions from our readers across social media and answer them in a question-and-answer format, giving readers a chance to have their voices heard.
You can submit your questions every week by tweeting them to the Jaguar Report Twitter handle or by submitting them here.
This week we take questions on the Jaguars' usage of Travis Etienne, how the Jaguars could see multiple rookies have strong seasons, and more.
Q: Do you think any of the UDFA’s have a shot making the Week 1, 46 man roster (whatever the game day roster is these days)
A: Basically, a team can have either 47 or 48 players on its game day roster. If they have eight offensive linemen active, they can have 48. If they have fewer than eight, they are limited to 47.
I think DJ Daniel is the name to watch. Daniel is a long and productive cornerback who plays with the toughness the Jaguars ask of out of the secondary and the Jaguars could have the No. 5 cornerback spot up for grabs as the year progresses. I still think Dylan Moses will remain on the roster, too, but I am not sure if he is someone who will be on the active game day roster early as a rookie.
Q: Are you expecting Trevor Lawrence to be a game manager early in the season and then they let him loose towards the end? And who do expect to be his main target?
A: I honestly don't think they try to ease Trevor Lawrence into the offense and slow play his development. I think due to his vast experience as a starter, specifically against top competition, the Jaguars are going to feel comfortable with putting the ball in his hands early in his career and asking him to win games. Lawrence was the No. 1 overall pick in part because of how ready he is to make an instant impact. He isn't a player who hasn't taken a ton of reps in recent years or who doesn't have years of tape, and practice, already put onto the field. The Jaguars limiting his responsibilities would be a pretty big surprise because, well, they don't have to.
Q: What in the world is Urban Meyer doing with Etienne?
A: I really don't think it is that surprising. Clemson didn't use Etienne creatively in the passing game, limiting his routes to a few basic ones out of the backfield and some screens, but he has the kind of stop/start ability, balance, and agility to be a tough matchup when split out wide against linebackers. The Jaguars asking Etienne to learn more about the receiver position and aspect of his role actually increases his value to the offense because it isn't like he won't still carry the ball. The Jaguars sticking Etienne in a running back committee and not utilizing his speed in the passing game as a mismatch would be a mistake.
Q: Which rookies breakout like James Robinson did last year? Guys who maybe aren't big names but become known by end of the season
A: I really think Jay Tufele is going to be seen as a big piece of the defense moving forward. Maybe he doesn't ever become an eight-sack player or someone who puts up eye-popping numbers, but he has such an impressive skill set for a young interior defensive tackle. Whether it is his strength at the point of attack, his athleticism,
He should be able to make an impact as a run defender from day one and he has the potential to be even more than that as the season goes on. He is my guess to be this year's Day 3 standout pick. The Jaguars needed more versatile run defenders, and Tufele can do that at a high level even in a worst-case scenario.
Q: Any news on Sidney Jones? I know he has health issues but he was one of the few bright spots in the DB department
A: I think he is still going to play an important role in the defense. This is a scheme that is going to heavily rely on a deep group of defensive backs since it deploys so many on the field, and as things stand today I think Jones has the inside track to be the Jaguars' top backup cornerback. At a position where it is tough for many corners to play an entire season, Sidney Jones very well could still make some starts in 2021.
Q: Was Trevor Lawrence the only QB in Jags' rookie minicamp? Asking for a friend...
A: Lol, he was. The team had 18 players in for the minicamp, and Trevor Lawrence was the lone quarterback.
Q: How long until Trevor Lawrence has a head and shoulders commercial lined up?
A: If they know what they are doing, they will drop it right before Thursday Night Football against the Bengals and market against Skyline Chili somehow.
Q: Do you think Etienne will spend more time at WR than RB?
A: I don't. I think the best baseline we have to reference for his role is D'Andre Swift last year in Detroit. According to PFF, Swift spent 41 snaps lined up out wide, 11 snaps in the slot, and 345 snaps in the backfield. I think an 85%/15% split may be a bit too extreme for Etienne, but 80%/20% sounds about right, with most of his snaps coming in the backfield. The simple fact is the Jaguars gained more from getting Etienne more knowledge of a position he doesn't know during minicamp as opposed to putting him at a position he has already thrived at. That doesn't mean they won't still let him mainly be a running back.
Q: Is James Robinson looking at a reduced role?
A: Reduced role? Yes, but let us put that into context. Robinson had the sixth most carries in the NFL last year despite missing two games and despite the Jaguars having the fewest rushing attempts in the entire NFL in 2020. He also finished sixth in touches and rarely left the field in games he played in. So yes, I do think he has a reduced role from last year. But no, I don't think he becomes a non-factor. I still think the Jaguars will rely on him as the physical element of their passing game; plus, he is still their best pass-blocking running back by a big margin.
Q: Fill in the blank: Walker Little's first start comes in week _?
A: Week 8. I think Meyer changes things up after the bye week if he sees the Jaguars having a losing record, especially since the Jaguars will be taking on a likely playoff team in the Seattle Seahawks and will need to make some kind of adjustment if they are on a losing skid. By Week 8, the Jaguars should have a good idea if Cam Robinson is the guy moving forward or not -- there is no point having Little on the bench for the team's tough second-half stretch if they think he is the answer moving forward.
