JACKSONVILLE – Where once there were four now there are three.

Regarding the Jaguars' running backs, Head Coach Liam Coen on Wednesday made clear they like their trio of Travis Etienne Jr., rookie Bhayshul Tuten and rookie LeQuint Allen Jr. If the Jaguars are running by committee, it's a strong committee.

"We feel good about where we're at moving forward," Coen said.

The Jaguars on Tuesday traded third-year running back Tank Bigsby, their leading rusher last season, to the Philadelphia Eagles for a fifth-and-sixth-round selection in the 2026 NFL Draft. Etienne on Wednesday called the trade "the nature of the NFL."

"It's a business, for real," Etienne said, a 1,000-yard rusher in 2022 and 2023 who rushed for 143 yards on 16 carries in a 26-10 Week 1 over the Carolina Panthers at EverBank Stadium this past Sunday.

"It easily could have been anyone of us. It just happened. We have to keep going. We're in the thick of the season. We wish the best for him. I know he's going to do great things. He's with a great offensive line in a great situation.

"I'm thankful for him and know he's happy in his situation."

Etienne, asked if the situation stunned him, said, "Being in the fifth year in the NFL, I don't know that anything stuns you anymore."

"You kind of expect the unexpected at this point," Etienne said. "You kind of roll with it."

Quarterback Trevor Lawrence called the trade an example of "the hardest part of the business, this sport."

"That's a friend of mine, but you look at the guys we have and what they've done and they've definitely earned the opportunity," Lawrence said. "They've been playing really well. Travis obviously did a really great job [Sunday]. I was proud of the way he played. It was awesome to see, then the young guys have earned opportunities.

"When you have four [running backs] like that, it is just hard to get everyone touches and to make it make sense. Those guys are ready and they've prepared."

Etienne, Bigsby, Tuten and Allen all were active Sunday.

"It's hard to rotate four," Coen said Wednesday, adding that trading Bigsby was a combination of Etienne's performance and confidence in Tuten and Allen – with the latter two impressing as rookies throughout the offseason and training camp.

"It's opportunity for those guys to step up and give us quality snaps," Coen said, adding that Bigsby did not request a trade. "It really just came down to, after some time of evaluating and just working through some things, probably best to move on, to just give him an opportunity to go and same with us.

"I wish him nothing but the best, and he's a good dude and just worked out that way. So, really feel confident, obviously, with some of the way that those other guys stepped in, did some good things."

Etienne, the Jaguars' starter since early in the 2022 season, earned the starting job in training camp and has impressed coaches with his professional approach – and his fit in Coen's offensive scheme.

Tuten rushed for 11 yards on three carries against the Panthers, with Allen rushing for seven yards on one carry with a four-yard reception. Tuten is a player the Jaguars believe has potential as an eventual starter – "I'm just excited for the role I have right now, and I'm trying to build on that," he said – with Allen emerging quickly as perhaps the team's best third-down back.

"They're very coachable; they're sponges and they have the willingness and want-to to get better each and every day," Etienne said of the rookies.

Jaguars defensive end Josh Hines-Allen called Allen's skills as a pass-blocker "some of the best I've seen out of a young guy."

"He understands protection, and he's also a tough running back, too," Allen said, adding of Tuten: "He's going to be a very special tunning back. We have a good, special group there."

NOTABLE

• Bigsby's trade also means a change at kick returner, with Bigsby returning one for 20 yards against the Panthers. Coen on Wednesday third-year wide receiver Parker Washington, Tuten and Allen all will work at kick returner this week. "Getting a couple other guys some reps as well," Coen said.

QUOTABLE

• Allen on being involved in multiple post-play shoving matches during training camp: "That's just how I play football. It's football. I'm not out here to play pattycake. I'm out there to protect the quarterback at all costs and to protect my teammates at all costs. Football is violent. If you don't want to be violent, play a different sport."