Saints land former first rounder, Louisiana native Travis Etienne Jr.

Here's that big-play threat at running back we were looking for. NFL Network's Ian Rapoport was first to report that Jacksonville Jaguars running back Travis Etienne Jr. intends to sign with the New Orleans Saints at the start of the new NFL year on Wednesday. The move brings Etienne closer to home -- he's from Jennings, La. two and a half hours' drive west from New Orleans. The former first-round pick ran hard for Jaguars but is well-versed in the passing game, too, having scored nearly as many touchdown catches (6) as rushing TD's (7) last season.

And he immediately steps in as the team's RB1, whether or not Alvin Kamara is around for 2026. The 27-year old will sign a four-year contract worth $52 million, per NFL insider Jordan Schultz, coming up to an average of $13 million per year. For a New Orleans offense that ranked bottom-five in just about every rushing metric a year ago, Etienne gives them a real talent injection. He's ripped off almost as many runs of 30-plus yards the last four years (12) as the Saints have had as a team (15), and only one of those came from a Saints running back (Audric Estime's 31-yard scamper last season). It'll take more investments to get their run game going, but signing Etienne and Buffalo Bills left guard David Edwards is a good start.

This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: NFL free agency: Saints to sign former Jaguars RB Travis Etienne Jr.