NFL
Jacksonville Jaguars
Travis Hunter

Jags GM Gladstone: Hunter to continue to play both ways

By
TSN.ca Staff

Published: 

Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Travis Hunter (12) reaches to catch the ball as Los Angeles Rams cornerback Cobie Durant (14) challenges during the first half of an NFL football game between the Los Angeles Rams and the Jacksonville Jaguars in London, Sunday, Oct. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung) (Kin Cheung/AP)

The eulogies for Travis Hunter’s offensive career appear to have been premature.

Speaking on The Rich Eisen Show, Jacksonville Jaguars general manager James Gladstone says the wide receiver-cornerback will continue to play on both sides of the ball, contradicting reports that emerged earlier in the offseason.

“He is set to play both sides of the ball,” Gladstone said. “The piece that I think we can expect to see is actually an uptick in corner usage. Last year it was a higher volume, higher percentage of wide receiver usage than it was corner. I think we can expect to see that corner percentile and count go up. That’s not to say anything impacts his availability and usage on offence. It just means that cornerback usage will increase.”

The Heisman-winning second overall pick of the 2025 NFL Draft out of Colorado, Hunter appeared in only seven games last season. Hunter tore his LCL during an Oct. 30 practice and would undergo season-ending surgery in November.

Hunter’s offensive snaps dwarfed his defensive snaps by a two-to-one margin at 324 to 162. Hunter finished his first season recording 28 receptions for 298 yards and a touchdown. On the other side of the ball, he recorded 15 tackles and recovered a fumble.

Gladstone says the team is abiding by Hunter’s desire.

“He wants to play both ways,” Gladstone said. “He wants to do exactly what he set out to do when he first started putting that into action all those years ago. That’s his dream, and we’ll support that in the best way we can and do what we feel like is in the best interest of winning football games. That’s putting him in position to do what he does best and that’s with the ball in his hands and in defending some of the best receivers.”

The Jaguars won the AFC South last season at 13-4, reaching the postseason for the first time since 2022. The 13 wins were the team’s most in over 25 years. They were eliminated in the AFC wild-card round by the Buffalo Bills, 27-24.