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There were plenty of players for fantasy football owners to potentially be concerned about in Week 1, but the New Orleans Saints’ backfield was particularly troubling. Specifically for Travis Etienne Jr. owners.
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At halftime, Etienne had just five touches for nine yards against the Detroit Lions. While he was much more productive in the second half, finishing with nine carries for 46 yards and seven receptions on nine targets for 32 yards, his usage was not where fantasy owners were expecting or hoping it would be.
That’s because Kendre Miller also had nine carries of his own, which he took for 30 yards, and he got the rushing touchdown. Etienne only played on 53% of the snaps, a number that fantasy football owners would like to see be much higher. Miller was in for 30% of the snaps, and CJ Donaldson for 16% of the snaps.
Travis Etienne squeaked out 14.8 points in Week 1 thanks to some insane play volume from the Saints.
86 plays-by far the most for any team.
Not an ideal split in backfield that used three RBs even with Alvin Kamara out.https://t.co/XxgNxpUFoTpic.twitter.com/FoSTAGGhJA
– Dwain McFarland (@dwainmcfarland) September 14, 2026
Can Fantasy Football Owners Trust Travis Etienne Jr In Week 2?
Miller’s inability to stay healthy could eventually open things up for Etienne, but that is not something you can bank on in Week 2. However, it was a good sign that Etienne handled the vast majority of the passing work and was much more efficient on the ground, averaging 5.1 yards per carry, compared to Miller, who averaged just 3.3 yards per carry.
Between Etienne looking better and all the money the Saints gave him this offseason, we expect Etienne to see his snap share rise in this backfield. It just doesn’t make sense for them to leave him off the field for nearly half the team’s snaps if he is clearly the better option.
The Saints will go on the road to play the Baltimore Ravens in Week 2. In Week 1, Jonathan Taylor ran great against Baltimore, carrying the ball 19 times for 98 yards and two touchdowns on 5.2 yards per carry. He also caught three of his four targets for 23 yards.
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Granted, Etienne is not Taylor; however, this does give us reason to believe that the Ravens’ rush defense isn’t going to be elite or a defense that you should be trying to avoid for fantasy running backs.
This is also a game that we expect the Ravens to win handily, and Etienne saw the majority of his value in the passing attack on Sunday when the team was trying to make a comeback against the Lions. The game script will likely be similar in Week 2.
We are going to roll with Etienne again in Week 2. However, if we keep seeing him splitting carries with Miller and not getting the goal-line work, then it is going to become an issue. Nevertheless, we are not giving up on Etienne after just one week because of a fear of Miller.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/onsi/fantasy as Can Fantasy Football Owners Trust Travis Etienne Jr In Week 2?.
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This story was originally published September 14, 2026 at 11:37 AM.