RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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See the full story · 1 sourcesWhen the Jacksonville Jaguars drafted Travis Hunter second overall in the 2025 NFL Draft, he was one of the most special prospects to enter the league in years.
Hunter was a rare two-way player who played both wide receiver and cornerback full-time in college at Colorado. He won both the Fred Biletnikoff Award as the nation's top WR and the Chuck Bednarik Award, given to the nation's best defensive player in 2024, and also won the Heisman Trophy . Hunter looked like a lock to become a superstar at the next level.
Despite his unique ability to dominate a game on both sides of the ball, most NFL teams were planning to limit Hunter to one position if they were the one lucky enough to draft him.
Not Jacksonville. The Jaguars wanted him to play both WR and CB and made a massive trade on draft night to move up to get him. Hunter was thought to have All-Pro-level talent at both positions, though many believed his ceiling was actually higher at cornerback.
However, Hunter was used much more often as a receiver during his rookie year, which was cut short due to a knee injury after only seven games. He did not make nearly the impact he was expected to. Most of his catches were of the dink-and-dunk variety, not the big-play, downfield catches we saw from him in college.
This year, with Brian Thomas Jr. expected to rebound after a miserable season, the emergence of Parker Washington as a star, and Jakobi Meyers, who came over in a midseason trade last season, Jacksonville is moving Hunter to a full-time corner role while only occasionally playing receiver.
Since CB was thought to be his best position, and that he has All-Pro potential there, naturally Hunter would be immediately ranked as one of the best corners in the NFL, right?
Not so fast. Hunter has a lot to prove after his disappointing rookie campaign.
Bleacher Report just ranked Hunter as the league's 62nd-best cornerback, a shockingly low ranking for a player thought to be an immediate superstar.
Concern Over Technique And Physicality
Though Bleacher Report still views Hunter as a starting-level corner, they expressed concerns over Hunter's technique and ability to be physical making plays against the run.
"Being one of the most unique prospects to enter the league in some time, Hunter was always going to have a tough time meeting expectations. An injury-shortened rookie season made that close to impossible. The football IQ, natural route feel and ball skills carried over to the NFL, but guarding more talented players will take some getting used to, and his man-coverage technique shows that. He's a slight corner, making run support and physical play tougher to deal with, but his zone acumen and ability to impact the football in the air give Hunter a path forward when he's healthy."
As far as calling Hunter "slight," he is 6'1 and has packed on plenty of muscle for his second NFL season. Despite the added weight, Hunter has remained blazing fast, being clocked at 22.6 MPH during practice.
Hunter has rare ball-skills for a corner, and has the talent and fluidity to mirror receivers' routes with ease.
Hunter's ability to be a strong run defender has yet to be determined. However, Hunter's college coach, Deion Sanders, is possibly the greatest cornerback ever. Sanders wasn't exactly known for his run defense, yet you won't find him ranked 62nd on any CB list.
Final Thoughts
Hunter being ranked 62nd among corners is genuinely confusing (he was 57th among WRs). If B/R wanted to make an argument that he is still unproven at the position in the NFL, fine. Instead, they centered their skepticism around Hunter's size and technique, both of which were included in his earlier All-Pro predictions.
Former Pro-Bowl CB DeAngelo Hall raved about Hunter's potential at corner earlier this offseason and believes he has the rare ability to strike fear into opposing quarterbacks because he can create turnovers.
Like seemingly everyone else on Jacksonville's roster, Hunter has work to do if he wants to earn respect from those outside of the organization. Admittedly, his rookie season did not meet expectations, but Hunter still possesses game-breaking skills on both offense and defense.
Expect Hunter to be ranked much higher at this time next year.
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