The New Orleans Saints went against the grain this offseason.
As most of the NFL shies away from giving big money to the running back position, the Saints gave an eight-figure contract to former Jacksonville Jaguars star Travis Etienne in free agency.
Whether or not that move works out could go a long way toward determining how good the Saints are in 2026.
Etienne will be paid $12 million per year, a rate the Saints must've felt they had to pay to land him over other suitors.
He'll lead a depth chart in front of the long-time Saints star Alvin Kamara, who is dinged up in the preseason but is expected to still make an impact as a receiving back once he gets on the field.
Etienne is the key to making the whole RB room tick, though. ESPN's Ben Solak named Etienne as the Saints' "X-Factor" for the season ahead as part of a new article on Friday, and the case is clear.
If Etienne clicks, the Saints could be quite dynamic. If he doesn't, there could be trouble, and the contract could quickly look a bit too heavy for the production.
Etienne's massive potential role in the Saints' offense, as well as the uncertainty with how he'll gel with his new team, makes it clear why he's the X-Factor.
Solak went into a lot more detail about it, too.
"No matter which way you sliced it, the Saints had one of the three worst rushing attacks in football last season: success rate (29th), EPA per rush (30th) and explosive rush rate (32nd)," Solak writes. "The first half of the year, when center Erik McCoy and backs Alvin Kamara and Kendre Miller were healthy, was bad. The back half of the year, when quarterback Tyler Shough was creating more explosive plays in the passing game but was stuck handing off to backups Evan Hull and Audric Estime, was also bad. With McCoy on the mend and veteran free agent David Edwards playing left guard, the Saints' offensive line could take a big leap in 2026. Second-year tackle Kelvin Banks Jr. and third-year tackle Taliese Fuaga are ready for it. But Etienne needs to deliver on his end of the bargain — a four-year, $48 million deal that made him, at the time, a top-10 running back in terms of salary."
Etienne's metrics don't actually show him to be a top-10 RB. That's the risk here.
"Etienne was largely an average back in Jacksonville," Solak writes. "Over the past three seasons, he has averaged 3.9 yards per carry (RBs average 4.5) with a 36% success rate (RBs average 40.4%). He has endured scheme changes, terrible offensive lines and fended off committee backfields. He also has value as a receiver. But the Saints need him to be a quality veteran back behind what they expect to be an ascending young line as they build a good offensive nucleus for Shough to develop."
The Saints have some familiar names behind Etienne, who is the clear RB1.
The aforementioned Kamara will spell Etienne when he needs a rest. New Orleans also still has Kendre Miller and Audric Estime.
They've all, besides Etienne, been a bit hurt during the summer, so New Orleans will need them healthy, and playing well, for Week 1 and beyond.
"If the running game repeats its 2025 woes, the Saints will be one-dimensional and accordingly unable to take a leap," Solak writes.
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