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When is Travis Etienne Jr. coming back? Will Travis Etienne Jr.play again this season? Read about Travis Etienne Jr.'s return date and injury updates for 2026.
New Orleans Saints running back Travis Etienne Jr. (hamstring) finished as the RB10 overall in PPR fantasy football leagues last season. He rushed 260 times for 1,107 yards and seven touchdowns and caught 36 passes for 292 yards and six touchdowns.
He also only fumbled one time. He seemed to have everything you want in a starting running back -- durability, pass-catching upside, scoring upside on the ground and through the air, reasonable efficiency, and enough athleticism to make explosive plays.
In his first three games as a Saint, though, he saw anything but workhorse volume. He logged just 17 carries in his first two games, which makes little sense from the outside looking in on an RB that signed a four-year, $48 million contract in the offseason. The injury he's dealing with right now makes his upside case even tougher. When will he be back? Let's check out the latest update.
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Travis Etienne Jr. Injury Update for Fantasy Football
Etienne suffered a hamstring injury in Week 3, just as it looked like he was ramping up to a bigger workload. Though it's just speculation on my part, it's possible that he was dealing with a hamstring problem in the offseason, was never listed on the injury report for it, and had his touches capped to prevent further injury.
It would follow the logic of him getting hurt after increasing his touches to 15 in Week 3. He was on pace to have a big day volume-wise. But he was placed on injured reserve due to the injury, and now will miss at least two more games.
Travis Etienne Jr. Being Placed on Injured Reserve with Hamstring Injury https://t.co/ILyTcnIFoc
— RotoBaller NFL (@RotoBallerNFL) October 1, 2026
At least Etienne has the bye week in Week 8 to recover further without missing more games. That's a reasonable game for him to come back in, as he'll have missed five total weeks at that point.
Hamstrings are indeed tricky once re-injured, as we know from Saints WR Jordyn Tyson (hamstring) this season. Everything depends on the severity, which we just don't know yet. We'll find out more closer to Week 9.
Travis Etienne Jr. Fantasy Football Outlook
Etienne's upside case for 2026 was heavily clouded by his lack of usage in Weeks 1 and 2. It will be hard to get a good understanding of his true role in the Saints offense until he returns and works his way back to full health.
But for now, he should be an intriguing buy-low for teams that have the luxury of extra players to trade for him. A bit past mid-season, we could see him take on a bigger role in the offense. He could be the last cheap high-volume RB you can pick up this season aside from snagging a backup on the waiver wire in case of an injury to a team's starting RB.
Travis Etienne goes 71 YARDS on the ground!
CARvsJAX on FOX
https://t.co/HkKw7uXVnt https://t.co/tvsIl6cNNJ— NFL (@NFL) September 7, 2025
New Orleans' other running backs have been ineffective this season. RBs Alvin Kamara, CJ Donaldson, and Kendre Miller all average under four yards per carry this season, have just four rushing touchdowns between them, and haven't shown an ability to make explosive plays this year.
None of them have been particularly effective in the passing game, either. That's an area in which Etienne has shown upside in previous seasons. Kamara was once one of the NFL's best pass-catching backs, but he's 31 years old, and has been on the decline for numerous seasons now.
Etienne is worthy of a buy-low trade offer in most leagues, and could be an RB2 when fully healthy.
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Week 6 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players: Alvin Kamara, Kendre Miller. These are some of the most common searches for fantasy football lineups in Week 6.
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Popular Week 6 Searches. Curious to see some tough lineup decisions for Week 6 (2026)? Below you will find a list of some popular Who Should I Start? searches that RotoBaller readers are looking at this week. Click any of the links to see the result and recommendation.
Popular Week 6 Searches - Start/Sit Player Comparisons
Below are some popular searches and comparisons from our Who To Start tool for Week 6 for Alvin Kamara, Kendre Miller:
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