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Jacksonville Jaguars rookie Bhayshul Tuten justifies team's faith with all-around performance
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- Jacksonville Jaguars rookie Bhayshul Tuten justifies team's faith with all-around performance
The Jacksonville Jaguars showed their faith in running back Travis Etienne by trading Tank Bigsby away last week.
But the move was also a vote of confidence for rookie Bhayshul Tuten , who is now solidly the Jags' RB2.
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Tuten averaged 7.4 yards every time he touched the football Sept. 14 in the team's 31-27 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals at Paycor Stadium in Cincinnati. Relieving Etienne at strategic spots during the game, Tuten had 42 yards rushing on eight carries (5.3 per carry) and caught two passes for 32 yards, including an 8-yarder on a nifty screen play that he took into the end zone for his first NFL touchdown, which gave the Jaguars a 14-7 lead in the second quarter.
Bhayshul Tuten 's TD came on an audible
Tuten's catch and run was a work of art.
The Jaguars lined up in an empty backfield with Tuten flanked to the left by wide receiver Dyami Brown .
Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence throws a pass to running back Bhayshul Tuten during the second quarter of their game against the Cincinnati Bengals on Sept. 14 at Paycor Stadium in Cincinnati.
Lawrence, correctly reading a blitz coming up the middle, changed the play at the line of scrimmage and motioned for Tuten to come into the backfield and set up just to his left, seemingly to help with pass protection.
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Linebackers Logan Wilson and Owen Burks came charging up the middle. But instead of blocking, Tuten slipped off to the left and Lawrence flipped a quick pass to him.
Tuten then juked defensive end Cam Sample and beat the other defensive end Shemar Stewart , to the end zone.
Tuten shows speed, moves and strength
Tuten had two positive runs on first down to start drives in the second half and had a memorable run in which he turned what seemed to be a tackle for a loss into a 5-yard gain.
The former Virginia Tech player showed what Jaguars offensive coaches have been raving about since he was drafted: a combination of quickness and more brute strength than his 5-foot-9, 209-pound frame might suggest.
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Lawrence took time out during his post-game news conference to praise the fourth-round rookie.
"Man, he played really well," Lawrence said. "Obviously, he did some stuff in the passing game — and that big catch for a touchdown and then running the ball — just getting downhill. He had some great runs that maybe didn't look great at first, but he pushed an extra 2, 3, 4 yards and ended up being 7-yard gains that looked like they probably should have been 3-yard gains. So, he did a really good job." "
Jaguars ran the ball well again
One of the vows from coach Liam Coen when he was hired is that the Jaguars would be a team that runs the ball more effectively. When Coen was the offensive coordinator in Tampa Bay last year, the Bucs went from last in the NFL in rushing in 2023 (88.8 yards per game) to fourth in 2024 (149.2).
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The Jaguars also are trending in that direction.
After piling up 200 yards last week against Carolina, the Jaguars ran for 139 yards and a 5.1 per-carry average against the Bengals. Etienne had 71 yards on 14 carries and caught two passes for 18 yards and a touchdown.
Through two games, the Jaguars are averaging 169.5 yards per game and 5.6 yards per carry. Last year, they averaged 101.7 yards per game (26th in the NFL) and 4.2 yards per carry.
Another rookie running back, LeQuint Allen , contributed a key first-down conversion on a hard third-and-four run in the third quarter, two plays before Lawrence connected with Etienne for a touchdown.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jacksonville Jaguars rookie RB Bhayshul Tuten turns in first NFL score
