Sunday was a frustrating outing for the Jacksonville Jaguars as they fell to the Bengals 31-27
, but the outlook going forward is still positive, particularly in regards to the 2025 rookie class. Travis Hunter and Bhayshul Tuten were prominent pieces in the game plan and they each impacted the game significantly, but what about the rest of the rookies? Let’s break down each of them in this week’s rookie report.Travis Hunter
Travis Hunter’s snaps took a huge jump in Week 2 as fans got their first real
look at his two-way ability against the Bengals. He played 42 snaps on offense (59%) and 43 on defense (62%) which makes him just the second player since 2006 to play at least 20 snaps on both sides of the ball.
Hunter came down with just three of his six targets for 33 yards as his deployment in the offense still seems like a work in progress. However, on the defensive side of the ball Hunter looked impressive in his first real action against tough competition. He had two tackles and a pass deflection, which should have been two if not for a questionable pass interference call that negated what would have been a game winning defensive play from Hunter.
The Travis Hunter takes after two weeks of play have been dramatic to say the least. I, for one, am very encouraged by his play and think it’s only a matter of time before his impact is clear on both sides of the ball.
Bhayshul Tuten
After the Tank Bigsby trade last week, we knew that rookie running back Bhayshul Tuten would see an increase in usage and boy did he take advantage of that fact. His snap count on offense jumped from four in Week 1 to 18 on Sunday.
He had eight carries for 42 yards (5.3 ypc) and turned both of his targets in the screen game into highlight plays. The first one he took 24 yards while making several Bengals miss in the process, and the second was perhaps the highlight of the game as he caught the screen and made a filthy move on a defender before accelerating through another on his way to his first NFL touchdown.
Tuten’s burst, contact balance and speed are already evident and if not for Travis Etienne’s terrific start this season he may be in line to get starters carries. Even so, his ability is going to be a valuable element of this offense all season long
Jack Kiser
Linebacker Jack Kiser continues to be solely a special teams contributor as he logged 17 snaps on that unit and didn’t see any action on defense. He didn’t register a tackle and was on a kickoff unit that allowed three different 30+ yard kick returns to Samaje Perine so a less than impactful day for the former Fighting Irish captain.
Rayuan Lane III
Like Kiser, Lane was used primarily on special teams as he tallied 22 total snaps between the kickoff and punt teams. He did register one tackle but it came when Samaje Perine was already passed the 30 yard line. The kick coverage unit as a whole needs to have a bounce back game against the Texans so look for more aggression from Lane in Week 3.
Jonah Monheim
The center out of USC was used exclusively on the field goal unit and he did a nice job of maintaining his responsibility as Cam Little went 4/4 on his field goals and 2/2 on extra points.
LeQuint Allen Jr.
Despite the Tank Bigsby trade, LeQuint Allen Jr. saw about the same usage as he had in Week 1 as he had 11 total offensive snaps against the Bengals. That resulted in two carries for 13 yards but he was primarily used as an extra blocker on passing downs. His willingness to get into the ribs of larger defenders is already paying dividends as Trevor Lawrence has taken just one sack through two games this season.
Let us know your thoughts on the rookies in the comments below!
