Who Should I Start? Chris Rodriguez Jr. or Emmett Johnson

Tuesday, September 8, 8:42 AM

On the Jacksonville Jaguars' unofficial depth chart heading into Week 1 of the 2026 regular season this Sunday against the Cleveland Browns, running backs Bhayshul Tuten and Chris Rodriguez Jr. are listed as co-starters at the RB position. Tuten, a second-year back who had 307 rushing yards and five rushing touchdowns in his rookie campaign last year, is expected to see most of the early-down rushing opportunities for the Jaguars this year, and he has the most fantasy football upside because of his explosive big-play abilities out of the backfield. However, Rodriguez's presence as a pass-catching and goal-line option for head coach Liam Coen's offense will certainly lower Tuten's overall ceiling in Year 2 in Duvall. Fantasy managers should keep in mind that pass-catching specialist LeQuint Allen Jr. (undisclosed) is trending towards missing the season opener, which could give C-Rod more work as a receiver out of the backfield. Going into the Week 1 matchup against Cleveland, Tuten is the preferred fantasy option as a low-end RB2/high-end RB3/flex, while Rodriguez will be more of a touchdown-dependent RB3/flex option in PPR formats.