Travis Hunter’s first NFL interception came at exactly the right time for the Jacksonville Jaguars.
With New England threatening in the second quarter Sunday, Hunter stepped in front of a Drake Maye pass intended for Efton Chism III and shut down the drive in the end zone. It was the kind of play that changes the feel of a game, and in a 35-6 Jacksonville win, it fit the Jaguars’ tone perfectly.
Jacksonville never gave the Patriots much breathing room. Trevor Lawrence threw touchdown passes to three different receivers, and the Jaguars were in command well before the third quarter rolled around. The win pushed Jacksonville to 2-1 and looked far more complete on offense than what they showed in the second half of their previous game against Denver.
For Hunter, the interception carried real meaning. Jacksonville took him second overall in the 2025 draft with the idea that he could impact games on both sides of the ball, and an injury ended his rookie season in Week 7. On Sunday, he was on the field for a season-high 42 defensive snaps and finally got the takeaway he had been chasing.
The Jaguars’ defense made life miserable for Maye throughout the afternoon. According to Next Gen Stats, Jacksonville pressured him on 58.4 percent of his dropbacks, and New England never found a steady response. Hunter’s end zone pick erased one of the Patriots’ best chances to score.
Lawrence also reached a milestone of his own. His touchdown throws gave him 105 for his career, moving him past Blake Bortles for second in Jaguars franchise history.
The result didn’t answer every question about how Jacksonville will deploy Hunter this season, but it did give the Jaguars something tangible: a big defensive workload, a turnover, and a lopsided win to go with it.
Jacksonville heads on the road in Week 4 to face the Cincinnati Bengals Buffalo Bills.
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