The New Orleans Saints continue to be forced to operate with Travis Etienne in the backfield, which has made their RB depth chart a little more confusing for everyone involved.
The Saints will be in that same predicament on Sunday when they play in Paris against the Pittsburgh Steelers for Week 7 of the 2026 NFL season.
Etienne is still out, and so the likes of Alvin Kamara, Kendre Miller and CJ Donaldson will all contend for carries against the Steelers.
The Saints would certainly appreciate it if Etienne could be back sooner rather than later, and there is some hope on that front.
When is Travis Etienne Coming Back?
There isn’t yet a confirmed return point for Etienne, but he is eligible to return very soon.
Etienne had to miss at least four games from the point he was placed on injured reserve.
He went onto IR after Week 3, meaning Week 7 is his fourth missed game (along with Weeks 4, 5 and 6).
That makes Etienne eligible to return for the Saints for their next game.
A key note there: The Saints won’t be playing in Week 8. They have their bye. So Etienne isn’t actually going to return next week.
But the Saints then return to action in Week 9, which will mark the fifth game since Etienne went on IR. Since he’s only forced to miss four games with that IR placement, he’ll be eligible to return.
It’ll be up to the Saints to determine whether Etienne is actually healthy enough to play in Week 9, but by the rules, he’ll be allowed to be back out there.
Why Isn’t Travis Etienne Playing?
Etienne remains out with an injury he sustained playing in Week 3.
That week, Etienne hurt his hamstring, left the game, didn’t return and then was placed on IR.
It has forced him to miss more games so far in his Saints tenure than games he has played.
New Orleans signed Etienne to a long-term, expensive contract to be their lead back, and that hasn’t come to fruition so far. There’s a lot of time left on that deal, though, so the Saints will certainly be pushing Etienne back into a prime role whenever he’s able to return to the field.
The Saints have barely treaded water early in the season, going 2-4 overall (1-2 with Etienne, 1-2 without Etienne) heading into Sunday’s game in Paris. For Etienne’s eventual return to matter, it would be a great help to the Saints to win on Sunday.
When is Travis Etienne Coming Back? Saints RB Injury Timeline in Focus