Fantasy Alert: Jaguars' James Robinson Will 'Definitely' Play Week 1 vs. Commanders

After suffering a torn Achilles late last season, Jacksonville Jaguars running back James Robinson is set to return sooner than most might have expected.

Jaguars head coach Doug Pederson told reporters on Monday that Robinson "definitely" will play in the team's Week 1 matchup against the Washington Commanders on Sunday.

While Robinson's return is surely a welcome sight for the Jaguars offense, he's not expected to see a substantial workload in his first few outings. Pederson indicated in late August that he plans on easing Robinson back into team's rushing attack, saying, "I don’t think you go full steam ahead. I think you gradually increase his reps."

Robinson has been Jacksonville's lead back in his first two NFL seasons, but he will cede those duties this year to Travis Etienne Jr., who is fully healthy after missing his entire rookie year with a foot injury. Fantasy football managers are hoping for a big year from Etienne, but Robinson's presence could complicate things.

The third-year speedster has totaled 1,837 rushing yards over his first two seasons, so he's known to be a dependable ball-carrier. He's also a solid receiver out of the backfield. When healthy, Robinson could end up taking carries away from Etienne, who is considered more of a big-play threat.

It appears that the Jaguars don't have a set plan for splitting the workload among their running backs and will rather feed whoever has the hot hand on any given day.

"We have a vision for what we hope it is,” offensive coordinator Press Taylor said of the team's rushing attack. “You kind of always envision what you're going to do when everybody's healthy, but until we get to that point and we see everybody in there and everybody is available on game day, then you kind of just have to go with what you have in that particular availability for that game."