AFC Notes: Travis Etienne, Jaguars, Texans, Titans

Jaguars

Jaguars HC Doug Pederson said RB Travis Etienne (foot) is “good to go” and is optimistic that he’ll play in Week 13 against the Lions.

“He felt good yesterday. I am optimistic that he will play,” said Pederson, via John Shipley. 

Pederson said rookie RB Jarod Conner played well in Week 12 and wants to get him more playing time. 

“He ran hard, took care of the football, had a couple nice pickups in protection. Again, just growing, great young player,” Pederson said. “Quite honestly, I just need to put him out there a little bit more and let him get more confidence and show us that he’s capable of handling his role on a big stage. I thought he took a step in the right direction last week.”

Texans

• The Texans ruled out WR Brandin Cooks (calf) and CB Derek Stingley Jr. (hamstring) from Week 13. (Aaron Wilson)

Titans

The Titans made a pretty obvious decision that they didn’t think it was worth it to pay WR A.J. Brown $25 million a year, and they’d rather turn him into a first-round pick that was used on a cheaper replacement in rookie WR Treylon Burks. Whether that was smart or not remains to be seen. Brown has been phenomenal for the Eagles, while Burks has battled injuries but still flashed some talent as Tennessee’s passing game overall has struggled. 

“[The Titans] run the ball so much that you could argue they don’t need to pay a receiver that much,” an NFC executive said via ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler. “But some of the struggles in the passing game suggest they miss him. He’s probably worth what he got, and it’s not a crazy deal and one that Tennessee could have paid. When the Titans get behind, they don’t have A.J. Brown to throw to. If they have to pass, it’s harder on them now. Burks is a good player, though, so let’s see how far he comes along.”