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Teri Berg
Feb 21, 2026
Updated at Feb 24, 2026, 23:22
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Jaguars' 2025 draft class returns: Running back Bhayshul Tuten delivered significant action and impressive results in his rookie season.

With the NFL combine in Indianapolis nearing,  start of free agency in March, and this year's NFL draft another month out, we're taking a closer look at what has become of the Jacksonville Jaguars' draft selections from 2025.

The Jags took nine players last year, starting with cornerback/receiver and Heisman Trophy-winner Travis Hunter as the No. 2 overall pick.  

The team's next two selections were back-to-back picks from the Round 3 -- defensive back Caleb Ransaw at No. 88 overall and at No. 89 offensive lineman Wyatt Milum from West Virginia.

We continue our Class of 2025 retrospective with the Jaguars' 104th overall selection, running back Bhayshul Tuten, who saw significant action in 15 games in his rookie season.

2025 NFL Draft -- Fourth Round

Bhayshul Tuten played two seasons at Virginia Tech after transferring from North Carolina A&T. He was the third offensive player chosen by Jacksonville, following Hunter, who plays both sides of the ball, and Milum, the first offensive lineman selected by the Jaguars' then-new brain trust of Executive Vice President of Football Operations Tony Boselli, general manager James Gladstone and head coach Liam Coen.

Virginia Tech RB Bhayshul Tuten shows out during the 2025 NFL combine at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis on March 1, 2025. (Kirby Lee/Imagn Images)Virginia Tech RB Bhayshul Tuten shows out during the 2025 NFL combine at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis on March 1, 2025. (Kirby Lee/Imagn Images)

Pre-Draft: Quiet Dominance

As a senior for the Hokies in 2024, Tuten rushed for 1,159 yards and 15 touchdowns, and was named an All-Atlantic Coast Conference second-team selection in both his seasons in Blacksburg. He set a Virginia Tech single-game record with 266 rushing yards on 18 carries -- one an 83-yard TD run -- and four total touchdowns in a win over Boston College.

The 5-foot-9, 211-pound tailback was no less impressive at last year's combine, where among running backs he ranked first in the 40-yard dash (4.32 seconds), 10-yard split (1.49 seconds), and vertical jump (40.5 inches), and tied North Carolina's Omarion Hampton for second with a 10-foot, 10-inch broad jump. (Quinshon Judkins led all tailbacks with a broad jump measuring 11 feet; the starter for national champion Ohio State was drafted by the Cleveland Browns in the second round at 36th overall.)

While running back has been a devalued position in recent years, netting Tuten in the fourth round was something of a coup for the Jaguars. He was drafted one spot ahead of Arizona State's Cam Skattebo, whose 1,711 yards and 21 TDs as a senior earned him first-team All-American honors and who had draft watchers buzzing about his likely selection in the second round.

A Paulson, N.J., native, Tuten's college tenure, combine performance, and selection at 104th overall was relatively overlooked. 

Rookie Season

Even once he got on the field in Jacksonville, he played second banana, backing up Travis Etienne Jr., a first-round pick (25th overall) in the 2021 draft and former Clemson teammate of the Jags' star quarterback Trevor Lawrence.

While he didn't start for the Jaguars all season, Tuten logged significant playing time in 15 regular-season games and also appeared in the team's wild-card game against the Buffalo Bills. Working in the trenches behind the dual-threat Etienne, Tuten finished the season with 83 carries for 307 yards and five touchdowns; and also had 10 receptions for 79 yards and two TDs. His 19 kick returns went for a total 539 yards.

Tuten missed two games after injuring his right finger during a third-quarter kickoff return in the Jaguars' Week 15's win over the New York Jets. A surgical repair to the broken finger sidelined Tuten for the Jags' Weeks 16 and 17 games against the Broncos and Colts. He returned in Week 18, amid Jacksonville's eight-game winning streak, for five carries, 23 yards and a touchdown in the team's season finale.

The Jags' season ended abruptly on Jan. 11, when the Bills pulled off a 27-24 come-from-behind victory that had analysts and Jags watchers scratching their heads.

Jacksonville's use of Tuten in the backfield in the playoff game's first half was effective. The rookie carried the ball four times for 51 yards, making three explosive plays -- runs of 20 yards, 14 yards, then 13 yards late in the second quarter to set up Lawrence's three-yard TD pass to tight end Brenton Strange to end the half.

Tuten never got back in the game at running back, in what appeared to be a habit for the Jaguar offense -- using Tuten as a change-of-pace back in the first half of games, then defaulting to Etienne and narrowing carries in the second, often in what seemed like a shift from using the run as a threat to using it to maintain or protect leads.

2026 Outlook

Signed to a four-year, $5.28 million rookie contract in 2025, Tuten is likely safe as part of the Jaguars' roster. Etienne, meanwhile, is set to enter free agency in March. 

Etienne totaled 260 carries for 1,077 yards and seven touchdowns as the Jags' starter, while sharing the rushing load with Tuten (and less so with several other ball carriers). He also had 36 catches for 292 yards and six TDs. 

While free-agency watchers surmise Etienne could go elsewhere, given the limited resources Jacksonville is projected to have under its cap restraints for 2026, it seems more likely the Jags will try to re-sign their RB1, given his dual-threat abilities and five years of seasoning behind Lawrence, who he's played with since their college days at Clemson. Etienne is also set up for success in Jacksonville, on a team that's looking up with a Coach of the Year candidate and solid talent all around, especially on offense -- and that includes Bhayshul Tuten.

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Our "Whatever Happened to Jags' Class of 2025" series includes a closer look at Jacksonville's other fourth-round selection, No. 107 linebacker Jack Kiser.

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