Jaguars HC Liam Coen compares Travis Hunter to all-time great — on defense

We won’t know how the Jacksonville Jaguars plan to deploy rookie Travis Hunter until Week 1 of the regular season, but the former two-way Colorado superstar could see more time on defense than most seem to expect.

Hunter saw his most significant work on defense since the start of training camp over the weekend, and his natural instincts as a cornerback were hard for onlookers to ignore. He reportedly broke up three passes, including one from quarterback Trevor Lawrence that was intended for No. 1 wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr.

Per Lance Zierlein of NFL.com: “I know everyone wants to see Travis Hunter play both ways full-time but I'm telling you now - he may end up making a bigger impact as a CB in year one. His ball skills and instincts are off-the-charts. Once the ball goes up, it's WR vs. WR and not WR vs. CB.”

Man!!! I’m going to die on the “TRAVIS HUNTER AT CORNER FIRST” hill. He was born to do it! #Halloffametalent pic.twitter.com/NWgBpMkimb

— Ryan Clark (@Realrclark25) July 27, 2025

NFL insider Dan Graziano of ESPN was in Jacksonville for practice, and after speaking with coaches, he said there’s zero doubt that Hunter will play on both sides of the ball in 2025. Per Graziano, new head coach Liam Coen compared Hunter to an all-time Jaguars great — and it wasn’t a wide receiver.

“He has a presence out there — I’m not comparing him to his guy, yet — but his presence when you see him in coverage reminds him a little bit of Jalen Ramsey, in terms of how he makes his presence felt,” Graziano said during Monday’s episode of Get Up. “He said it also helps that he knows the offensive plays when he’s playing defense.”

That second part is a fair point, but with rising young corner Montaric Brown ruled out for the remainder of training camp with a lower body injury, Jacksonville’s need for a player of Hunter’s caliber in the secondary could grow in short order.

Coen is an offensive-minded head coach, and it’s easy to see Hunter getting involved in the passing game early and often, especially in the screen game. But the preseason buzz around Hunter’s skills on defense are impossible to ignore, and his usage on that side of the football could become more prominent than expected in Year 1.

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