Chris Rodriguez Jr. Fantasy Stats

Michael DiRocco of ESPN.com writes that "it'll be a while" before the Jacksonville Jaguars' backfield dynamic gains any clarity. Jacksonville lost Travis Etienne Jr. in free agency and replaced him with Chris Rodriguez Jr., who will compete for the lead-back role with Bhayshul Tuten. Although it might seem like Tuten has an early leg up on the competition because of his familiarity with the Jaguars' offense, we must also acknowledge that Jacksonville deliberately went out and paid Rodriguez $10 million, so they want to get him involved. He also has a connection to head coach Liam Coen, who was his offensive coordinator at Kentucky in 2021. The Jaguars are no strangers to complicated backfields. They entered last season with no clear frontrunner between Etienne, Tuten, and Tank Bigsby. The good news is that there are now only two names in the mix, instead of three. Still, it sounds like it will be a while before we gain any clarity in this backfield. Both Rodriguez and Tuten should be viewed as low-end RB3/flex options, and whichever player wins the starting role will jump to the low-end RB2 tier given how strong Jacksonville's offense looked last year.

With running back Travis Etienne Jr. no longer in town, the Jacksonville Jaguars could be eyeing a timeshare in their backfield in 2026 with Bhayshul Tuten and newcomer Chris Rodriguez Jr. ESPN's Michael DiRocco writes that "it'll be a while before it's determined what the workload share between Tuten and Rodriguez will be." Behind Tuten and Rodriguez is second-year back LeQuint Allen Jr., seven-year veteran DeeJay Dallas, and Ja'Quinden Jackson, an undrafted rookie free agent in 2025 who spent all of last year on the practice squad. Tuten, a fourth-rounder last year, ran for 305 yards and five touchdowns while catching 10 passes for 79 yards and two scores as a rookie. Rodriguez had 4.8 yards per carry and ran for 500 yards and six rushing touchdowns in 2025 with Washington. He had 920 yards and 10 TDs in mostly a reserve role in his three years in D.C., which makes him the Jags' most experienced back. He also has experience in head coach Liam Coen's offense after working with him in 2021 at Kentucky. DiRocco writes that could make Rodriguez "an early leader to be the Jags' No. 1 back" going into the summer.

Jacksonville Jaguars running back Chris Rodriguez Jr.'s new landing spot should benefit him long-term, and it also bodes well for his fantasy football managers. Rodriguez, a former Washington Commander, hit free agency this offseason and ultimately signed with the Jaguars. It was a very intriguing offseason move, as Jacksonville had recently lost Travis Etienne Jr. and was looking for someone to share the backfield with Bhayshul Tuten. While Tuten's one year of experience in the Jags' backfield gives him an early advantage on the lead-back role, we fully anticipate that Rodriguez will also be heavily involved. Rodriguez should play at least one-third of the snaps, and we'd have to imagine that Tuten still has somewhat of a short leash given his youth and lack of a track record. In other words, there's a path for Rodriguez to land the lead-back role if Tuten struggles or gets injured. Plus, Rodriguez already has a connection to head coach Liam Coen. At Kentucky in 2021, when Rodriguez was running for Kentucky and Coen was Kentucky's offensive coordinator, the former amassed 1,440 scrimmage yards and 12 touchdowns. All in all, Rodriguez is a very appealing "buy" in dynasty leagues this offseason.

The Jacksonville Jaguars are signing former Washington Commanders running back Chris Rodriguez Jr. to an undisclosed two-year deal on Wednesday, sources told Jordan Schultz of FOX Sports. Rodriguez will head to the AFC South after three years in Washington. The 25-year-old former sixth-round pick by the Commanders in 2023 out of Kentucky had his best year in 2025, carrying the ball 112 times for 500 yards and six touchdowns, which were all career-highs. He also caught three passes for 30 yards in 13 games played (seven starts) in D.C. In his three years with Washington, C-Rod had 10 rushing touchdowns while averaging a healthy 4.6 yards per tote. Jacksonville lost Travis Etienne Jr. to the New Orleans Saints in free agency and will now go into the 2026 campaign with Rodriguez, Bhayshul Tuten, and LeQuint Allen Jr. as their backfield options, barring another RB addition in the upcoming draft. Tuten figures to be the Jags' RB1, but Rodriguez could easily have flex appeal in a complementary role in a rising offense. UPDATE: Rodriguez will make $10 million on his two-year deal.

Washington Commanders running back Chris Rodriguez Jr. has been a productive player across 12 games this season, recording 435 rushing yards and five touchdowns on 96 carries. However, the 25-year-old has been in-and-out of his team's lineup in recent weeks, missing Week 15 with a groin injury and Week 17 with an illness. In his absence, Rodriguez Jr. may have had his role in the Washington backfield usurped by rookie back Jacory Croskey-Merritt. Over the last three weeks, Croskey-Merritt has racked up 224 rushing yards and four touchdowns on 37 carries. Rodriguez Jr. is expected to return for Washington's Week 18 matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles, and he'll likely still see some touches. However, the Commanders may opt to split touches between Rodriguez Jr. and Croskey-Merritt evenly, or ride the hot hand with the rookie.

Washington Commanders running back Chris Rodriguez Jr. (illness) was a late inactive for the team's Week 17 Christmas loss to the Cowboys, clearing the path for rookie Jacory Croskey-Merritt to put up 105 yards and two scores on the ground. With roster crunches ratcheting up during the fantasy playoffs, there's a real chance that Rodriguez may be available on some waiver wires this week, making him a must-add in any league with a Week 18 championship game. While Croskey-Merritt has looked brilliant at times this year, Washington has repeatedly shown that, when healthy, they prefer Rodriguez to handle the majority of their groundwork. Rodriguez has cracked double-digit points in Half-PPR formats in three of his last six games played, and should slot in as a low-end RB2/flex in a plus matchup with the Eagles in Week 18.

Washington Commanders running back Chris Rodriguez Jr. (illness) will not be available for the team's divisional clash with the visiting Dallas Cowboys on Christmas Day, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter. The 26-year-old was a late addition to Washington's injury report, as he came down with an illness early on Thursday. Despite initially garnering a questionable tag, he'll now miss his second game in three weeks. With Rodriguez inactive, backfield mates Jeremy McNichols and Jacory Croskey-Merritt will each see a significant uptick in work. Notably, in the last game sans Rodriguez, Croskey-Merritt barely eked out McNichols in snaps (32-30). However, he handily out-touched the latter 18-10. With that in mind, McNichols appeared to be the preferred passing-down back, so game script may determine who sees more work against the visiting Cowboys.

According to Nicki Jhabvala of The Athletic, Washington Commanders running back Chris Rodriguez Jr. (illness) was added to the injury report and is listed as questionable for Thursday's contest against the Dallas Cowboys. The 25-year-old missed their Week 15 contest due to a groin injury but quickly reclaimed the starting role last weekend, taking 15 carries for 63 yards and a score during their loss to the Eagles. Over his last four games, Rodriguez has logged at least 10 carries in each game and averaged a solid 9.7 PPR points, operating as the preferred option in the backfield. Managers should continue to monitor his status leading up to kickoff in case Rodriguez faces a setback and is unable to play. If he is ruled out, managers should view seventh-round rookie Jacory Croskey-Merritt as a viable FLEX play in deeper formats, facing a Dallas defense that is allowing the seventh-most PPR points to opposing running backs.

Washington Commanders running back Chris Rodriguez Jr. returned from injury in Week 16, taking 15 carries for 63 yards and a touchdown in the 29-18 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. Although there was concern that rookie Jacory Croskey-Merritt would be more of a factor after his big Week 15 outing, Rodriguez returned to his usual workload. He played a season-high 56% of the snaps, while Croskey-Merritt played 22% and Jeremy McNichols played 24%. He faces the Dallas Cowboys, who may be without star defensive tackle Quinnen Williams. The Cowboys ranked as the worst run defense in the NFL before they acquired Williams at the deadline, and with him out last week, Omarion Hampton had 95 yards and a touchdown on 17 attempts. While there are concerns about the Commanders' quarterback situation this week, look for them to run it a ton against this Cowboys defense, where Rodriguez could be a league-winner in Week 17.

Washington Commanders running back Chris Rodriguez Jr. has been productive since taking on a bigger workload in Week 9. The third-year back has totalled 69 carries for 316 yards and four touchdowns while adding two catches (three targets) for 12 yards as a receiver. Rodriguez has been the head of a three-man committee in Washington's backfield, playing 43.1% of the snaps, with rookie Jacory Croskey-Merritt (31.7%) staying involved on early downs and Jeremy McNichols (33.3%) handling passing-down duties. Rodriguez and Croskey-Merritt both found the end zone last week against the Eagles, but the Commanders' offense could be starting Josh Johnson at QB on Thursday against the Cowboys, with Marcus Mariota (hand, quadriceps) injured and uncertain to play. That downgrades the status of all Washington players in fantasy. Facing a Dallas defense that is allowing the sixth-fewest rushing yards per game since acquiring Quinnen Williams, Rodriguez profiles as a low-upside flex option in Week 17.