The Jacksonville Jaguars have officially signed running back Bhayshul Tuten to his rookie contract, according to the NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo.
Tuten was the second selection in the fourth round of this year’s draft and was the fastest running back at the NFL combine, running a 4.32-second 40, which brings some added home run ability to the Jaguars‘ backfield.
That speed that Tuten possesses resulted in a number of big plays while at Virginia Tech, which included averaging 6.3 yards per rush last season and being very difficult to bring down. He ranked well in missed tackles forced and average yards after contact, per PFF.
However, like any first-year player, Tuten is navigating the learning curve that comes with making the jump to the NFL level. He’ll also have to overcome the fumbling issues he sometimes had while in college.
Tuten will factor into the Jaguars’ offense this season, but what his workload looks like remains one of the more intriguing training camp battles that’ll take place this summer, with Tuten competing for opportunities with Travis Etienne, Tank Bigsby, and LeQuint Allen.
“I think he’s done a solid job,” Liam Coen said during minicamp. “He needs a lot more work, which all those guys do. A lot of the running backs, man, it’s a huge jump from protection systems in college to the pros and that’s usually where you see the tempo slowing down for them. Like playing slower, thinking more, when pass pro starts to kind of bog the mind. Then let’s call it, you got five different tracks of footwork for a running back to learn.”
Coen then added: “We’re trying to teach the why and sometimes that can slow a back down in this phase, especially when it’s tag, and people are in awkward positions when you’re trying to stick your foot in the ground to run vertical to run through them, you can’t. It’s awkward.”
(Please note that this article will be updated.)