Pro Football Rumors
The Jaguars’ running backs room looks completely different than it did only two years ago, and the unfamiliar group will have an additional challenge to overcome this offseason. According to Ryan O’Halloran of The Florida Times-Union, running back Chris Rodriguez Jr. has undergone a procedure on his left foot but should be back to “full go” in time for training camp.
When former Jaguars running back Travis Etienne departed in free agency, Jacksonville already had his presumed replacement in the building in fourth-round rookie Bhayshul Tuten. With the only other running backs remaining on the roster behind Tuten being his fellow rookie, seventh-rounder LeQuint Allen, and veteran special teamer DeeJay Dallas, the Jaguars signed Rodriguez to bring some additional experience to the room.
That experience was sidelined, though, when Rodriguez suffered a foot injury during the team’s offseason program. Luckily for the second-year backs, the Jaguars also signed veteran back Ameer Abdullah about a month ago. Without Rodriguez in the room, though, the team doesn’t have a running back that rushed for more than 310 yards last year — Tuten totaled 307 as a rookie.
The team reportedly allowed Etienne to walk because they felt comfortable moving forward with Tuten, so there’s no concern for who they will be relying on in the run game, but Rodriguez is also expected to be a big part of the rushing attack in 2026. The Kentucky-product played for the Wildcats when Jaguars head coach Liam Coen was the offensive coordinator at the school, so the move to Duval seemed like a comfortable fit for Rodriguez’s second contract. While the surgery certainly put Rodriguez’s new start on hold, “the recovery is not expected” to force him to miss the start of training camp come late July.
Rodriguez should be joining second-year two-way player Travis Hunter in becoming full practice participants at training camp. It’s been known since early May that Hunter will be expected back for camp, and Coen provided some updates on Hunter’s recovery this week, per The Florida Times-Union’s Juston Lewis.
In the latest update, Coen informed reporters that Hunter had clocked speeds as fast as 22.6 miles per hour before practice yesterday. While Hunter has been getting plenty of looks in the team’s virtual practice room, seeing him hit those speeds shows just how close Hunter is to returning to the outdoor practice fields. While Hunter and his coach may be getting antsy, it seems clear he and Rodriguez can set their sights on training camp.
