How Travis Etienne Made a Massive Impression vs. Panthers

The Jacksonville Jaguars began their regular season with as good a home-opening win as this team could have, defeating the Carolina Panthers, 26-10, as the offense ran for 200 yards and gave up zero sacks in an impressive display of head coach Liam Coen and his system. The first-year head coach notches his win No. 1 as the Jaguars go into Baltimore next week.

For all accounts, the Jaguars dominated the Panthers for most of the contest, forcing quarterback Bryce Young into mistakes with three turnovers and two turnovers on downs throughout the game. However, on offense, it was the run game that impressed the most, including a running back in his final contract year with Jacksonville.

Coen with high praise for Travis Etienne

Jaguars veteran tailback Travis Etienne put on a monster performance against the Panthers, rushing for 143 yards on 16 carries, one of his best performances in the past couple of seasons. Etienne enters the final year of his rookie contract and needs a strong season to earn himself a potential extension. Week 1 was a step in the right direction.

Jacksonville Jaguars running back Travis Etienne Jr. (1), left and his brother Carolina Panthers running back Trevor Etienne (23) exchanged jerseys after the game between the Carolina Panthers at Jacksonville Jaguars at EverBank Stadium Sunday September 7, 2025. Jaguars defeated the Panthers 26-10. [Doug Engle/Florida Times-Union] | Doug Engle/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Etienne's performance quietly overshadowed an impressive performance from Jacksonville's offensive line, which was able to generate movement at the line of scrimmage and open creases for their top running back. Coen was equally intrigued by the display, despite several miscues throughout the game: "I thought those guys up front played really well at times."

The play that stood out for Coen with Etienne was the 71-yard run in the second quarter following the ran delay:

"But the backed-up run that he makes…[Brenton] Strange comes across and gets a kickout block, but there is a safety sitting in the hole that Travis made a great move and broke loose," Coen explained.

Travis Etienne goes 71 YARDS on the ground!

CARvsJAX on FOXhttps://t.co/HkKw7uXVnt pic.twitter.com/tvsIl6cNNJ
— NFL (@NFL) September 7, 2025

The energy that Etienne gave off during the game was noticeable from Coen's perspective, who saw a player with more burst than players around him, fresh and explosive overall. Furthermore, he was 'proud' of what Etienne did on Sunday, including the offensive line unit as a whole.

"You could feel him all day. You definitely felt him having a little bit more burst than maybe other guys on the grass," Coen said. "He looked fresh, he looked fast, he took care of the football.

"Proud of him. He did a great job, but the whole unit really, you know, all the way through the end of the game ran the ball effectively.”

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