One player. Two positions. Zero margin for error. The Jacksonville Jaguars are changing the plan, and it matters more than you think. The Jaguars have spent months figuring out how to get the most out of Travis Hunter. This spring, head coach Liam Coen revealed a new approach to Hunter’s OTA schedule that flips last year’s model on its head.
Last year, the Jaguars limited Hunter’s practice to one side of the ball each day. This season, they plan to have him switch between both sides within the same practice session. Though it seems like a minor adjustment, it has significant implications for his performance and adaptability on the field.
Let’s break it all down.
Who is Travis Hunter, and why does this matter
Travis Hunter is not your average NFL player; he may be the most unique football talent in a generation. Hunter won the 2024 Heisman Trophy playing both wide receiver and cornerback for Colorado. He is the first full-time two-way player to win the award since the early 1960s. That alone tells you everything about how rare his skillset truly is.
The Jacksonville Jaguars traded four draft picks to select him second overall in April 2025. They gave up a first-rounder in 2026 among those picks. That is an enormous investment. Every decision around how Hunter is used carries massive stakes for this franchise.
Fun fact: Hunter is the only player in college football history to win both the Chuck Bednarik Award as the top defensive player and the Fred Biletnikoff Award as the top wide receiver in the same season.
What happened in year one at OTAs
The Jaguars played it safe last spring, perhaps too safe, and it shaped how they are now rethinking everything. During the 2025 offseason program, Jacksonville kept Hunter to one side of the ball per day in OTAs. Head coach Liam Coen said the team would not put Hunter in a position to do both in the same session that early in his development. The offense was more complex, so they started there.
Hunter attended both offensive and defensive meeting rooms daily, even on days he only practiced one side. The Jaguars wanted his mind engaged with both units at all times. It was a cautious but thoughtful approach for a rookie learning the NFL game at two positions simultaneously.
The knee injury that changed the conversation
Hunter suffered a non-contact lateral collateral ligament tear during practice on October 30, 2025. He underwent surgery on November 11, and his recovery timeline was set at six months. That puts his earliest possible return right around May 2026 OTAs.
The good news is that the injury was isolated. There was no additional damage to other ligaments or structures in his knee. Jaguars GM James Gladstone confirmed the rehab has been going as expected. Coen later added that Hunter is well ahead of where doctors projected him to be at this point in recovery.
What Hunter’s rookie season actually showed
In his shortened rookie year, Hunter played 67% of offensive snaps and 36% of defensive snaps across his seven appearances. He caught 28 passes for 298 yards and a touchdown. On defense, he recorded 15 tackles and three pass breakups before the injury cut his season short.
His best offensive performance came in London against the Rams, where he caught eight passes for 101 yards and scored his first career touchdown. The outing offered a strong glimpse of the kind of impact Jacksonville hopes he can make as a two-way player.
Fun fact: In Colorado in 2024, Hunter averaged more than 117 snaps per game. No other FBS player averaged more than 85. That is the most total snaps logged by any player in a single college season since at least 2017.
Coen’s commitment to keeping Hunter two-way
Despite all the positional debate, Jacksonville’s head coach has been consistent about one thing — Hunter stays on both sides of the ball. Coen told reporters he plans to remain fluid with Hunter’s schedule week to week. Coen said the team will continue to evaluate what the schedule looks like and where Hunter is needed most on any given day. Nothing is set in stone position-by-position.
GM James Gladstone backed that stance strongly after the season ended. He stated plainly that the team still expects Hunter to play on both sides of the ball in 2026. Gladstone pointed to the midseason progress Hunter was making before the injury as a major reason for that confidence going into year two.
Will Hunter play more cornerback in 2026
Pro Football Rumors reported in February 2026 that Hunter is expected to remain a two-way player but could work primarily at cornerback with a smaller role at receiver. Public reporting tied that possibility mostly to Jacksonville’s cornerback needs and overall roster construction rather than a formal position change announced by the team.
Hunter’s rookie snap split and overall production suggest Jacksonville could reasonably expand his workload at cornerback while still using him on offense in selected packages. Public reporting in February 2026 indicated that a cornerback-first approach was a possibility, though the team has not framed it as a permanent label.
What does this mean for Hunter’s long-term future in Jacksonville?
The rep-balancing plan in OTAs is not just about spring practice; it is about building something sustainable for the next several years. Hunter is under contract through 2028 with a fifth-year option available. The Jaguars paid a fully guaranteed $46.65 million rookie deal, including a record $30.57 million signing bonus paid entirely upfront. That investment demands the team develop him correctly and not rush the process.
The smarter daily rep structure in OTAs this spring gives Hunter a head start on building the physical and mental endurance needed to sustain a two-way role across a full 17-game season. If it works, Jacksonville could have one of the most unique weapons in the entire NFL. That is worth getting right, one rep at a time.
TL;DR
- The Jaguars are changing how Travis Hunter splits reps in 2026 OTAs, moving away from one side per day to a back-and-forth model within each session.
- Hunter suffered a season-ending LCL tear in October 2025 and underwent surgery on November 11. His recovery is reportedly ahead of schedule.
- Reports suggest Hunter may play primarily cornerback in 2026 with a part-time offensive role, though Coen says the plan will remain fluid.
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This article was made with AI assistance and human editing.
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