Jacksonville Jaguars coaches express elevated expectations for RB Travis Etienne in 2023

The Jacksonville Jaguars are expecting to see further development from running back Travis Etienne as he enters his third season in the NFL in 2023.

Though he ran for 1,125 yards and five touchdowns this past season, Jaguars running back coach Bernie Parmalee wants to see more consistency from the 2021 first-round pick (25th overall) out of Clemson.

“As runners, you have to be in tune with those lines,” Parmalee said during the team’s mandatory minicamp, via John Oehser of Jaguars.com. “You have to help set things up. You have to hit your landmarks… Have to press it. You have to understand how to leverage the linebackers… Have to understand the combination blocks of the linemen, who’s working with whom to block whom, and you have to anticipate where the play may hit. You can hit the home run if you get it, but you want to be consistent.”

Etienne, 24, missed the entirety of his rookie season after suffering a Lisfranc ligament tear during the preseason. He made his debut in 2022, and alongside fellow 2021 first-round pick (No. 1 overall) Trevor Lawrence, helped lead the Jaguars to their first playoff appearance since 2017. In addition to his skills as a runner, Etienne flashed his dual-threat ability as a receiver. He hauled in 35 receptions for 316 yards.

Jaguars expecting more from Travis Etienne in 2023

Parmalee believes there’s much more to come from his talented back.

“There’s a lot more — a lot more,” Parmalee said. “We talked about it every day. He knows it, too. It’s one thing when you talk about it as a coach and the player doesn’t realize it. But when the player realizes what you’re talking about is true and he’s going to do everything he has to do to make sure he gets better, it’s going to bode well.”

Like Parmalee, Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson is excited to see how Etienne can build off his 2022 campaign.

“We’ve seen it this offseason; he’s progressed nicely there,” Pederson said. “Once we get the pads on and we start in our run periods, we’ll see how he’ll see the hole better. It just goes back to last year being kind of a rookie season for him. It’s like in the pass game: There’s a lot to learn, a lot to know and understand and, he’s really picked it up well.

“I’m excited for him for this year and what he can do, and even more to build off last year.”