NEW ORLEANS — Jaguars rookie running back Travis Etienne was placed on season-ending injured reserve Tuesday due to a foot injury that will require surgery, derailing the first-round selection's season before his regular-season debut.
The Jaguars have not officially released an update on Etienne's injury status, but if he is out for the regular season it would be the biggest setback for coach Urban Meyer and the Jaguars since he came out of retirement to take the job in Jacksonville.
Etienne sustained a sprained foot in the second quarter and did not return in Monday night's 23-21 loss to the Saints at the Superdome.
Meyer said the team didn't know the seriousness of the injury immediately following the game but Etienne was expected to undergo further testing Tuesday. The NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported Etienne suffered a Lisfranc injury, which is a tarsometatarsal fracture-dislocation in the middle area of the foot.
ESPN's Adam Schefter reported Tuesday afternoon that tests showed the injury is "likely to end his season," and reported that Etienne is expected to undergo surgery.
The Jaguars drafted Etienne 25th overall in the first round in April. At Clemson, Etienne scored a touchdown in 46 of 55 career games and closed out his career as the leading rusher in ACC history with 4,952 yards.
Etienne was expected to be the team's featured playmaker this season, a dual-threat who would be spread out wide like a receiver and also be featured in the backfield.
Those hopes were dashed when Etienne limped off the field early in the second quarter after a 1-yard run. He ended the night with one catch for three yards.
In last week's preseason opener against Cleveland, Etienne gained two yards on one carry and was targeted once with no catches.
"He's shown me great talent,'' Meyer said. ''We were planning on using him, and I look up and he is limping off of the field. He was out in the open space. ... I see what everyone else sees, a talented guy who we've got to get in space."
With Etienne out, it likely means James Robinson will share a heavier workload with Carlos Hyde. The Jaguars did not have much success running the ball against the Saints as they averaged just 2.3 yards per carry, 40 yards total. Robinson was Jacksonville's leading rusher with 13 yards on five carries.
The Jaguars will close out their three-game preseason schedule this Sunday against the Dallas Cowboys on the road.
