When the Jacksonville Jaguars drafted Travis Hunter in 2025, the expectation was he would play both sides of the ball.
And that ended up happening, with Hunter seeing 324 snaps on offense and 162 on defense before his season ended early due to a knee injury.
But things are expected to change for Hunter in 2026, as NFL Network’s Cameron Wolfe reports that Jacksonville will deploy Hunter more at cornerback than wide receiver.
“From what I understand, [the Jaguars] plan to play him as a full-time cornerback, a part-time receiver, which is a switch from last year when he played more than double of his snaps at receiver than cornerback,” Wolfe said.
In his limited snaps at cornerback last season, Hunter surrendered a completion rate of 50% and a passer rating of 68.3 when targeted, which showed the superstar potential he has on the defensive side of the ball.
Hunter showed flashes at wide receiver, but it was a disappointing season for him overall, with the Colorado product posting 298 yards and one touchdown in seven games, with 101 of those yards coming in a single contest.
Reducing Hunter’s snaps at receiver shouldn’t hurt the Jags too much, as the team is pretty well-stocked at the position with Parker Washington, Brian Thomas Jr. and Jakobi Meyers all under contract.
There were rumors circulating at last year’s trade deadline about the Jags’ possible interest in trading Thomas during what was a down season for him, but this usage change for Hunter will likely lead to Jacksonville holding on to him.
