Jaguars' Veterans Will Set Pace of Running Back Room

There are a number of position groups on the Jacksonville Jaguars' roster looking to take a big leap in 2025 -- such is the case after a 4-13 season.

But perhaps the group with the biggest chip on their shoulders is the running back unit.

Not the quarterback room. Not the offensive line. Not the secondary. But a running back room that knows it has the talent to be better than a year ago, and a room that knows it could help the Jaguars make a comeback in the AFC South.

After back-to-back years of some of the NFL's worst rushing production and efficiency, the room is hoping for a change of fortune under new head coach Liam Coen and running backs coach Chad Morton.

Leading that change will be the two veterans of the room: fifth-year running back Travis Etienne and third-year running back Tank Bigsby, who are joined in the room by rookie running backs Bhayshul Tuten and LeQuint Allen.

"That always helps. You know, veterans always help. And just helping these guys, you know, get through each day really, you know, not just on the football field and just studying, but just really off the football field, and how you take care of your body and the mental parts of it, you know, all the mental hurdles that you have to deal with," Morton said at the end of OTAs earlier this offseason.

"And so those guys have been a great resource for these young guys. And then they can still continue to lean on them and learn from them, and then, you know, we just, you know, we have a really tight room too, so we're just going to continue to just get better and just really help each other, even though we're competing at the same time. But, you know, we're also trying to help each other at the same time."

It will take all four running backs to get the Jaguars where they need to go. Luckily for the rookies, they are joined by two veterans who have plenty they want to prove.

"They're very excited about that, yeah. So they didn't have, obviously, the production they wanted to last year for whatever reason, you know," Morton said.

"So it's a new start for those guys. It's a clean slate. So that's what the newness of that and the excitement they have for that it's going to look different. It's going to be different this year."