Etienne spent his three year career in the SEC.
The New England Patriots adding another running back through the draft would be “potentially something that we would like to do,” head coach Mike Vrabel said at the NFL meetings last month. Vrabel’s team does have Rhamondre Stevenson and Antonio Gibson atop the depth chart at the moment, but there are several suitable candidates to fill the “good, young runner” role the first-year coach mentioned.
Among them is Georgia’s Trevor Etienne, who is currently a projected mid-round pick in the draft.
Hard facts
Name: Trevor Etienne
Position: Running back
School: University of Georgia (transfer from University of Florida)
Opening day age: 21 (07/09/2004)
Measurements: 5’8”, 198 pounds,
9 1/2” hand size, 29 1/4” arm length, 70 1/2” wingspan, 4.42 40-yard dash, 35” vertical jump, 10’ 4” broad jump, 15 bench press, 4.34s short shuttle, 7.20s three cone, 6.95 Relative Athletic Score
Experience
Colleges: Florida (2022-23), Georgia (2024)
Career statistics: 34 games (12 starts) | 1,003 offensive snaps, 144 special teams snaps | 371 carries, 2,081 rushing yards (5.61 yards/attempt) | 63 targets, 62 receptions (98.4%), 432 receiving yards, 1 TD
Accolades: Coaches All-SEC Third Team (2024), SEC All-Freshman Team (2022)
The brother of former first-round pick Travis Etienne, Trevor followed his brother’s footsteps as a running back where he earned a spot in the All-American Bowl his senior year of high school (also lettering in basketball and track). As a four-star recruit, Etienne committed to the University of Florida over a handful of other big-time SEC schools.
Arriving to Florida in 2022, Etienne immediately took on a role in the Gators backfield serving as the No. 2 to Montrell Johnson. Etienne played in all 13 games (one start) and was the more efficient back ending the year with 118 carries for 719 yards — posting two 100-plus yard games in the final four weeks of the season — and 6 touchdowns en route to being named to the SEC All-Freshman Team.
The following year, Etienne continued to split duties with Johnson in the backfield but saw his statistical production increase across the board. He rushed for a career-high 172 yards on 23 carries in an early season upset win over Tennessee before recording a 99-yard game with three touchdowns late in the year against LSU. After finishing the year with 753 yards and eight touchdowns, Etienne entered the transfer portal where he stayed in the SEC and committed to the University of Georgia.
After being suspended for the Bulldogs season opener after being arrested and charged in March with reckless driving and underage possession of alcohol, Etienne returned to the lineup in Week 2 in a limited fashion. Then serving as the top option in Georgia’s backfield, he quickly settled in and scored seven touchdowns — including a hat trick vs. No. 1 Texas — over four weeks midseason. Etienne’s workload was limited over the second half of the year as he missed three games with a rib injury, but he did suit up in the SEC Championship Game against Texas and went on to run for 94 yards and two scores.
With Georgia then losing in the College Football Playoff to Notre Dame, Etienne elected to skip his senior season and enter the NFL Draft. He accepted his invitation to the Senior Bowl and was a standout in the backfield being voted the top running back on the American Team during practice.
Draft profile
Expected round: 4 | Consensus big board: No. 167 | Patriots meeting: 30 visit
Strengths: A decisive, agile runner, Etienne is tough to bring down with his strong vision and stop-start ability to change direction. He is a sharp cutter who easily works laterally from gap-to-gap to turn apparent dead runs into chunk plays.
As seen by his 4.42 second 40 and 1.51 second 10-yard split, Etienne is also an explosive runner who can beat defenders to the outside and has good speed in the open field. And despite standing just 5-foot-9, Etienne runs bigger than his frame and isn’t afraid to engage through a defenders chest.
While used sparingly as a pass catcher throughout his collegiate career, Etienne hauled in 62 of 63 targets and the skillset made him a tough cover for opposing linebackers. He impressed in this area during the week of practice at the Senior Bowl.
Transferring to Georgia last season, Etienne also received praise from head coach Kirby Smart throughout the year for his leadership and work in the running back room off the field.
“I mean, he has been a bright spot, especially off the field, like energy, enthusiasm, leadership,” Smart said in October. “I mean, he cares about those linemen. He does things for them that are just — we haven’t had guys run here do that.”
Weaknesses: At just 5-foot-9, Etienne lacks the ideal size to serve as a workhorse back. That was seen as he dealt with injuries throughout his college (and high school) career and never led his team in carries — allowing him to enter the league fresh with just 371 carries to his name, however.
The lack of size also is seen in pass protection. While he shows good awareness to picking up rushers in a limited sample size, Etienne can be pushed backwards.
He was also arrested and charged with reckless driving and underage possession of alcohol in March of 2024.
Patriots preview
What would be his role? Joining a backfield with the aforementioned Rhamondre Stevenson and Antonio Gibson, Etienne can be a complementary piece in New England’s backfield to start his career. His skillset should allow him to mix in on early downs from the jump and eventually see work in passing situations.
What is his growth potential? Etienne will likely continue to never be a workhorse back, but has the traits to be a useful running back at the next level — especially if teams take advantage of his skills as a pass catcher. He must, however, stay healthy.
Does he have positional versatility? Despite being used minimally as a pass catcher in the Gators and Bulldogs offenses, both teams sparingly aligned Etienne in the slot and out wide at times throughout his career. Teams should continue to tap into that, while Etienne also returned 26 kicks (645 yards) and two punts (26 yards) at Florida.
Why the Patriots? Continuing with the theme of the mid-round running backs we’ve profiled, New England is looking for speed in their backfield, as Robert Kraft noted at the league meetings. Etienne brings that in the ground game as well as some untapped potential as a pass catcher. New England hosted Etienne on a 30 visit.
Why not the Patriots? Etienne’s frame and durability issues throughout his football career could cause teams to look elsewhere in the draft in hopes of finding a back who could handle a larger workload.
One-sentence verdict: Etienne was one of the more surprising evaluations in a positive way at the running back position and has intriguing traits to be a productive player in the right situation.
What do you think about Trevor Etienne as a potential Patriots target? Please head down to the comment section to share your thoughts.