Will Chris Rodriguez Lead the Jaguars in Carries?

By Shane Hallam | Updated on Thu, Apr 30 2026 8:21 PM UTC

Jaguars beat writer John Shipley believes new RB Chris Rodriguez will lead the team in carries in 2025. He also thinks the workload could be close to even with second-year RB Bhayshul Tuten. The Jaguars were rumored to be interested in moving up for a RB ahead of the NFL Draft, but they drafted none and added only UDFA J’Mari Taylor to the room. For now, Rodriguez, Tuten, and LeQuint Allen appear set to make up the active gameday roster at the position.

What They're Saying

John Shipley, SI: “My early gut feeling is that new running back Chris Rodriguez Jr. leads the Jaguars in carries, though I am not sure there will be enough of a difference between his workload and Bhayshul Tuten's worth talking about. LeQuint Allen will once again be the top passing down running back, while DeeJay Dallas and undrafted running back J'Mari Taylor will battle for the last spot.”

2026 Fantasy Football Impact

The Jaguars signed Rodriguez to a surprising two-year, $10 million deal. That included $6.2 million guaranteed and a max value of $12 million.

Rodriguez also reunites with HC Liam Coen, who was his OC at Kentucky during Rodriguez’s most productive year. That contract shows how much the Jaguars value Rodriguez and his potential contributions.

For fantasy, that relationship plus the money gives Rodriguez a path to weekly carry volume.

Tuten flashed high-end athletic talent as a rookie behind Travis Etienne, so the assumption before the Rodriguez signing was that he would take over backfield duties.

Instead, Shipley’s report points to a committee approach.

Allen also could carve out passing-game snaps after succeeding there last year, even with Tuten in the backfield:

Stat	Allen	Tuten
Pass snaps per game	12.4	8.6
Routes per game	8.4	7.7
PFF receiving grade	50.2	59.1

According to our ADP Market Index, Tuten sits at 7.07 in 1-QB PPR drafts, while Rodriguez is down at 14.06. That gap could make Rodriguez a value if the split ends up even.

Beat writers are great for breaking news, but their analysis is not always right. Shipley clearly has a strong pulse on the team, but it is still too early to be definitive about how the RB room will shake out.

Still, Rodriguez is worth considering in early drafts, with his ADP likely to climb if the buzz stays positive through the offseason.

Shane Hallam, Writer

Shane has over 20 years of experience creating content and playing every fantasy football format, including redraft, dynasty, devy, C2C, IDP, CFF, and more. He is a multi-year winner of $500 dynasty leagues on the FFPC and a King's Classic Champion. Shane utilizes deep film and scheme study to enhance his fantasy performance. He led the industry in 2024 preseason Kicker Rankings and ranked second in preseason QB Rankings. He also ranked eighth in preseason IDP rankings.