Travis Hunter keeps stacking up quiet wins on defense at Jaguars camp, and the early returns are hard to miss.
Through the first six days, the Jacksonville rookie has been tough to separate from, even with the caveat that he’s worked only two days in pads and the sample size is still small. Quarterbacks haven’t found much comfort throwing his way.
Most of the time, they’ve simply moved on because Hunter has stayed glued to his assignment. He’s not chasing the play after the fact.
He’s already where he needs to be.
That’s showing up in the production, too. Hunter has two passes defensed and an interception on defense, which isn’t a huge pile of numbers considering how many snaps he’s taken. But the coverage itself has been the point.
On Aug. 4 at the Miller Electric Center, that showed up in a few different spots. In a period where the offense was working from the 5-yard line, Hunter and the rest of the secondary helped force a coverage sack on Trevor Lawrence after nobody came open.
Later in a red-zone period, Lawrence missed Parker Washington with Hunter in coverage. That’s a notable rep against what the article describes as the Jaguars’ best receiver in camp.
Hunter also got involved on offense, where he caught a bubble screen from Nick Mullens, slipped past a defender and turned it into space. It was his fifth catch of the preseason.
As for his workload on Day 6, Hunter logged seven offensive snaps and 10 defensive snaps. That marked the fifth time in six days he played more on defense than on offense.
For camp overall, he’s been on the field for 35 offensive plays and 51 defensive plays in 11-on-11 work. In 7-on-7, he’s added five offensive plays and seven defensive plays, bringing his total to 40 offensive snaps and 58 defensive snaps.
The Jaguars haven’t held a 7-on-7 period since they went into full pads on Aug. 3.
In Other News...
Travis Hunters Jaguars Role Is Creating A Big Camp Debate
Travis Hunters first training camp with the Jaguars has already turned into one of the teams most watched storylines, and not just because of the hype that followed him into Jacksonville. During the fifth practice of camp, he was on the field for 13 snaps in 11-on-11 work, again dividing his time between defense and offense as the staff continued to sort out how his unique skill set fits into the plan.
Through camp, Hunter has logged 69 snaps in team periods, with most of that work coming at cornerback, though he has also lined up at wide receiver. Jacksonville has made clear it wants him to lean more heavily toward defense this season while still keeping him involved on offense, and the exact mix could change depending on the matchup, which only adds to the intrigue around how the Jaguars will deploy one of their most unusual young players. [Read more 🡒]
Jaguars Fans Need Patience With One Early Camp Concern
Five practices into training camp, the Jaguars are still doing the sort of work that usually matters more in September than in July. Liam Coen has made it clear the offensive line and the run game are central priorities, and the early focus has been on cleaner blocking techniques and the kind of repetition that helps an offense build timing and trust up front. So far, the returns in the running game have been uneven, but that is hardly unusual this early in the process.
Coen has also stressed patience, and that is probably the right message for a team trying to reshape how it plays in the trenches. The Jaguars are not looking for a finished product yet, only signs that the coaching points are starting to take hold before the season opener. For now, the camp concern is real enough to watch, but not nearly far enough along to draw any firm conclusions. [Read more 🡒]