Travis Hunter made his NFL debut last Sunday as the Jacksonville Jaguars cruised to a 26-10 win over the Carolina Panthers. Hunter's debut was among the most anticipated in recent NFL history.
The two-way superstar saw time on both sides of the ball, totaling six catches for 33 yards on offense and one tackle on defense. Hunter was listed on the official depth chart as a starter on offense and a backup CB on defense. That held true for the game.
Hunter played 48 snaps on Sunday, 42 of which came on offense and only six on defense. It's not exactly the two-way role that Jaguars fans were hoping for or that Colorado fans tuning in to see their favorite son expected to see. But the Jaguars were always going to take things slow with last season's Heisman Trophy winner. They didn't draft him for this season. They drafted him for the next 5-10 years.
But Jacksonville could be getting ready to take the training wheels off. According to head coach Liam Coen, Hunter could see his defensive role increase substantially on Sunday against the Cincinnati Bengals.
Jaguars HC Liam Coen told reporters that Travis Hunter “will get more snaps on defense” Sunday in Cincinnati against the Bengals. pic.twitter.com/NVSP089vnm
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) September 10, 2025
The Bengals will be a massive test for Travis Hunter
The Jaguars' defense will need all the help it can get to combat the prolific aerial attack of the Cincinnati Bengals' offense. Led by QB Joe Burrow and stud WRs like Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, the Bengals are not an easy offense to keep in check.
It makes sense that Coen and the Jaguars may want more out of Hunter on the defensive side of the ball. He might give them the best opportunity to keep Chase and Higgins in check. Against those two, it takes a village.
Hunter's 48 snaps against the Panthers last week have to be the least amount he's probably ever played in his football life in a game he didn't get hurt in. He routinely played over 100 snaps during his two-year run at Colorado.
He can certainly handle a bigger workload moving forward, though it's hard to argue with the Jaguars taking things slow with playing Hunter on both sides of the ball. It's hard to argue with the first result, with Jacksonville easing past Carolina to get to 1-0.
If the team plans on making a push for the postseason - which is 100% the goal - then they'll need Hunter healthy and productive in December/January.