Travis Hunter’s role with the Jacksonville Jaguars may be about to expand.
Through the first two weeks, Hunter’s usage has been heavily tilted toward defense. He has logged 66 snaps on that side of the ball, working in rotation with Montaric Brown and Jarrian Jones, but that still amounts to only 58% of the Jaguars’ defensive snaps. On offense, his workload has been tiny by comparison: just 11 snaps.
That could change Sunday against the New England Patriots, according to Cameron Wolfe of the NFL Network.
“Their plan was to ease him in coming off that serious knee injury,” Wolfe began. “They planned for him to be a part-time player early and ease him up.
What I understand this week has been his most busiest week playing offense in practice. I expect him to play much more than he did the first two weeks on that side of the ball.
It's a balance for them. They know that he wants to be out there on the field all the time, but they know they need to protect him for him to last a whole season.”
Wolfe also said Hunter’s opportunities should rise on defense, even if the cornerback rotation stays in place for now.
“What I was told is Week 1 won't be the same as Week 18 and the hope is that he can play significantly more on offense and defense later on in the year,” Wolfe continued. “They've been rotating their three corners outside at two different spots to try to get him an extra breather, but expect that to lean off a little bit less as the year goes on. They know his playmaking ability is needed.”
That lines up with what Liam Coen said earlier in the week. Coen said the Jaguars intended to give Hunter more work on defense during practice this week, and after the offense struggled in the second half against Denver, he added that the team has to “look at everything we're doing.”
So far, Hunter has one catch for eight yards on offense. On defense, he has allowed three catches on four targets for 28 yards, while adding a pass breakup and drawing one penalty.
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