Travis Etienne Jr. is a fair Week 2 play — our RB22 at 11.1 projected points, right around the RB starter line.
- Projection
- 11.1 pts
- RB rank
- #22
- Matchup
- at BAL
Travis Etienne Jr.'s fantasy role in Week 2
Travis Etienne Jr. goes into Week 2 of the 2026 season as a every-week lineup piece at RB for the NO. He is rostered in 98% of leagues and actually started in 73% of them, and we rank him RB22 on our own weekly board at 11.1 projected points.
Roster rates are steady week over week, so his role looks settled rather than in flux.
No injury designation to work around right now, which keeps his projection honest.
Week 2 matchup breakdown
The matchup: at BAL. Our Pepper Meter heat rating for this spot is 2 out of 5, which is how we grade the combination of role, projection and opponent difficulty.
Against a typical starting RB baseline of 11 points, his 11.1-point projection is 0.1 points better. That gap is the whole start/sit argument in one number.
How to play it
Travis Etienne Jr. is a fair Week 2 play — our RB22 at 11.1 projected points, right around the RB starter line.
If you are deciding between him and another RB, compare projections first, then lean on the Pepper Meter heat rating as the tiebreaker.
Sally's take
Peppers & Picks ranks Travis Etienne Jr. (NO RB), our RB22 this week for Week 2 of the 2026 NFL season at BAL, projecting 11.1 projected points with a spicy Pepper Meter rating. 73% of managers already start him, and the depth-chart role behind that number looks stable. The math is unsexy and convincing: 11.1 points, 1% above what the position pays out on average. BAL is the opponent, and that's the part of this I'm least worried about. Spicy on the Pepper Meter reflects a steady weekly floor rather than a boom week — that's still a start.
Tina's take
Peppers & Picks ranks Travis Etienne Jr. (NO RB), our RB22 this week for Week 2 of the 2026 NFL season at BAL, projecting 11.1 projected points with a spicy Pepper Meter rating. 73% of managers already start him, and the depth-chart role behind that number looks stable. The math is unsexy and convincing: 11.1 points, 1% above what the position pays out on average. BAL is the opponent, and that's the part of this I'm least worried about. Spicy on the Pepper Meter reflects a steady weekly floor rather than a boom week — that's still a start.