Sportsnaut
Teams had months to prepare for the 2025 NFL Draft. The draft order had been set since the season ended, back in the end of December. Yet, it wasn’t until the day of the draft, on April 24, when the Jacksonville Jaguars traded up to select Travis Hunter with the No. 2 overall pick in the first round.
Hunter had been hyped up as a generational talent, capable of being an elite player on offense and defense. Through a small sample size of three games, Hunter hasn’t lived up to expectations.
Hunter has tallied ten receptions for 76 yards and zero touchdowns on offense, an average of 25.3 yards per game. Defensively, Hunter has compiled nine tackles and a pass deflection. Overall, the numbers are fairly underwhelming.
So far, he’s played 121 snaps on offense, or roughly 59% of the team’s plays. Defensively, Hunter has been on the field for 92 snaps, or 47% of the team’s action on defense. He’s even seen three special teams snaps. But fans want to see more. So does Deion Sanders, Hunter’s college coach at Colorado.
Sanders doesn’t just want to see more though. He believes that the Jaguars’ coaching staff is misusing Hunter’s talents. Specifically, he believes they’re not playing Hunter enough.
Sanders should have a great idea of exactly what Hunter is capable of, as he noted, he coached him for the past three years.
Of course, there’s a big difference between matching up with the size, speed, and strength of NFL players compared to college athletes. Perhaps that’s all the Jaguars are trying to prepare Hunter for, a grueling season that lasts 17 games.
Still, if Hunter can’t make his presence felt in a bigger way, would the right response be to play him even more? Or would they be better off having Hunter focus entirely on one side of the ball instead? It’s a hotly debated topic that won’t go away until he starts living up to his draft slot.
Related: Ranking Top 5 NFL Rookie of the Year Candidates
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