Should Fantasy Football Managers Draft Travis Etienne Or Tank Bigsby?

Which member of the Jacksonville Jaguars' backfield should fantasy football managers target on draft day: Travis Etienne or Tank Bigsby?

Jacksonville Jaguars running back Travis Etienne Jr. (1) hauls in a reception during an NFL training camp session at the Miller Electric Center, Friday, July 25, 2025, in Jacksonville, Fla. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union] | Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Jaguars have one of the trickiest running back rooms to navigate in fantasy football. Both Travis Etienne Jr. and Tank Bigsby are extremely talented players, but their roles have both changed over the past few seasons.

Heading into 2024, Etienne was fresh off back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons and firmly entrenched as Jacksonville’s lead back, with Tank Bigsby serving as his clear understudy. Fast forward to now, Etienne is coming off the worst season of his career—managing just 558 rushing yards and two scores—while Bigsby outproduced him with 766 yards and seven touchdowns.

With questions of how both running backs will be deployed as the Jags enter a new era under head coach Liam Coen, we break down which player has more value in fantasy football drafts.

Travis Etienne Jr. | ADP: RB31 93rd Overall

Jacksonville Jaguars running back Travis Etienne Jr. (1) rushes for yards during the second quarter Sunday, Dec. 15, 2024 at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Fla. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union] | Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Etienne was drafted in the first round, 25th overall, in the 2021 NFL Draft. In his first two seasons in the NFL, he lived up to this selection, rushing for 1,125 yards and 5 touchdowns in 2022 and 1,008 yards and 11 touchdowns in 2023 before falling off a cliff in 2024.

Despite the down season a year ago, a bounce-back campaign isn't out of the question. All offseason, he has worked with the first team offense, which is a positive sign, especially with an entirely new coaching staff. Another positive sign is that he seems to be fully healed from a nagging hamstring injury that forced him to miss two games in 2024.

Tank Bigsby | ADP: RB 42 130th Overall

Aug 17, 2025; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars running back Tank Bigsby (4) pushes away the tackle of New Orleans Saints linebacker Danny Stutsman (47) during the first half at Caesars Superdome. | Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

Bigsby was selected in the third round, 88th overall, in the 2023 NFL Draft. He saw some success at Auburn, rushing for a combined 2,906 yards over three college seasons, but only eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark once. This is a stark difference from his current Jaguars teammate, Etienne., who produced two seasons of over 1,600 rushing yards in college at Clemson and over 1,000 yards rushing twice in the NFL with the Jaguars.

Bigsby is also a different running back stylistically than Etienne. Travis relies on being elusive and also contributes in the passing game, whereas Bigsby doesn't provide much in the passing game and relies on power and down-hill running. This was one of the main reasons Bigsby took on a bigger role last season, as he provided a nice change of pace. A positive for Bigsby truthers is that last season in his career year, he only logged one total start, so even with Etienne taking first team reps, Bigsby can potentially assume his role.

Travis Etienne Jr. Vs Tank Bigsby Fantasy Football Verdict

In fantasy football, upside is everything. With both Jaguars running backs coming off the board in the later rounds, Etienne stands out as the smarter pick. He offers a considerably higher ceiling than Bigsby—particuarly in PPR formats—and if he returns to form, perhaps he could reestablish himself as a top-20 running back. However, as of now, both running backs sit outside the top-30 options in our 2025 Fantasy Football PPR Rankings. But Etienne is the slightly superior player and could provide some value as a Flex option in 2025 fantasy football lineups.