Travis Hunter Jr. had a bit of a breakout against the Kansas City Chiefs for Monday Night Football. He only finished the game with three catches, but came up with 64 yards and two of the biggest plays of the game: a catch in the flat near the line of scrimmage that he turned into a first-down conversion with a 12-yard pickup and a 44-yard snag on a jump ball. Both of those receptions led to touchdowns for the Jacksonville Jaguars in a narrow 31-28 upset victory.
After that showing, fans and analysts across the league were clamoring for Hunter Jr. to be featured in the offense more. There was already plenty of noise around his usage on that side of the ball, or lack thereof, but his performance against the Chiefs really brought it to a head. Those grumblers got their wish for Jacksonville’s next matchup with the Seattle Seahawks, to the detriment of the Jaguars.
Hunter Jr. wound up playing 58 snaps at wide receiver, nearly 80 percent of all offensive plays, and had seven targets. He finished with four catches for just 15 yards. It seems that volume isn’t the only thing holding him back this season.
Oct 12, 2025; Jacksonville, Florida, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Travis Hunter (12) reacts after a play during the second half against the Seattle Seahawks at EverBank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Travis Register-Imagn Images / Travis Register-Imagn Images
Had it been known that the Seattle Seahawks would be without three of their starting defensive backs, and that the Jacksonville Jaguars would have only a couple of days of practice with new cornerback Greg Newsome II — who played just nine snaps in his debut — one would assume that Travis Hunter Jr. would be used a lot more on defense than as a wide receiver.
That wasn’t the case. In Week 6, the two-way star played under 28 percent of his snaps at cornerback, with just 22. What’s worse is that he was highly effective in his limited time on defense.
According to our own John Shipley, he allowed just one catch on four targets for a total of 12 yards against the Seahawks, holding Sam Darnold to a 39.6 passer rating when throwing his way. That one reception was from Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who saw three passes while lined up versus Hunter Jr. It’s clear THJ was the Jaguars’ best chance at limiting JSN, as he dominated every other matchup, finishing with eight catches for 162 yards and a touchdown.
JSN vs. Travis Hunter: 1 catch on 3 targets for 12 yards
7 catches for 9 targets and 150 yards against rest of defense https://t.co/FaKS93DKf3
— John Shipley (@_John_Shipley) October 13, 2025If there was ever a game to deploy Hunter Jr. more at cornerback than at wideout, it was this one. There have always been debates over whether he’d be more effective and valuable on defense or on offense. Clearly, Head Coach Liam Coen and the Jaguars are still weighing that out themselves. They made the wrong call against the Seahawks, and it likely cost them the game.
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