Who Should I Start? Travis Etienne Jr. or James Cook

Friday, April 17, 5:37 AM

Before agreeing to a four-year, $48 million deal with the New Orleans Saints in the opening hours of free agency, running back Travis Etienne Jr. had finished as the RB17 or better in three of his four seasons with the Jaguars, and twice inside the top-10. While it was his elite efficiency that got him there in 2022, averaging over five yards per carry, his 2023 campaign was buoyed by increased goal line usage and his resulting 11 rushing touchdowns. After a down year in 2024, he put together perhaps his most complete season in 2025, finishing the year with 1,399 yards from scrimmage and 13 total touchdowns. Now part of a Saints offense that showed much to be excited about down the stretch, Etienne is expected to see the lion's share of the work out of a backfield that heads into the draft with a soon-to-be-31-year-old Alvin Kamara, the oft-injured Kendre Miller, and 2025 sixth-round pick Devin Neal. After hitting a top-three dynasty value in his first year as a starter, the 27-year-old Etienne is now RotoBaller's RB18, presenting rebuilding managers with a rare second sell-high window after he had fallen as low as RB40 on KeepTradeCut.