Jaguars RB Room Ranked Top-10 For 2024

CBS Sports has the Jaguars' running back room inside the top-10.

Jacksonville Jaguars running back Travis Etienne Jr. (1) runs out of the tunnel to the field through smoke, light's and lasers before the start of Monday night's game against the Bengals. The Jacksonville Jaguars hosted the Cincinnati Bengals at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Florida for Monday Night Football, December 4, 2023. The Jaguars were tied 14 to 14 at the end of the first half. [Bob Self/Florida Times-Union] | Bob Self/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY

Do the Jacksonville Jaguars have one of the best running backs in the NFL in 2024? One outlet thinks so.

In a ranking by CBS Sports of 32 running backs by the way of seven tiers, the Jaguars were one of nine running backs listed in the first two years -- effectively giving them a top-10 ranking. The Jaguars were listed in the second tier, titled "quality depth". They were joined by the Detroit Lions, Miami Dolphins, New Orleans Saints, and Pittsburgh Steelers.

Travis Etienne rushed for over 1,000 yards for the second season in a row for the Jaguars and notched a career-high 11 rushing touchdowns in his sophomore season. While he headlines the group, Tank Bigsby and D'Ernest Johnson are capable backups. T

Tyler Sullivan, CBS Sports

The four teams in tier 1, which was labeled "thoroughbreds" were the Philadelphia Eagles, Baltimore Ravens, Green Bay Packers, and the San Francisco 49ers.

The Jaguars' running game was among the least effective in the NFL a year ago, with the Jaguars finishing No. 31 in yards per attempt, No. 24 in rushing yards per game, No. 30 in rushing EPA/play, and No. 31 in rushing success rate.

With that said, the Jaguars have noted much of the blame should be placed at the feet of an offensive line that struggled to stay healthy in 2024.

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.

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.