JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) — The Jacksonville Jaguars turned two wall-sized, walkthrough simulators into a giant, singular unit this offseason.
It’s where Travis Hunter gets most of his work while recovering from a knee injury that cut short his rookie season.
And, yes, he gets reps on offense and defense.
“That one works both ways,” he quipped Wednesday.
Speaking publicly for the first time since tearing a ligament in his right knee in October, Hunter said
none of the recent speculation about his two-way usage moving forward bothers him.
“They’ve been doing that my whole career,” he said.
The Jaguars opened OTAs on Tuesday with Hunter working in a limited capacity. The 2024 Heisman Trophy winner and second overall pick in 2025 donned the same color jersey as the offense, had a play sheet in hand and was listening to calls through an earpiece. He even got into a few huddles and split out behind fellow receivers to run a simulated version of the play behind the line of scrimmage.
“He just needs to memory bank all those things so that when he is back moving around, he’s feeling good, he is flying around, he has it down,” quarterback Trevor Lawrence said. “I think he will. He’s been out there basically in the huddle every play. We’ve got a 12th guy. So, he’s been in the huddle listening. He’s locked in. He’s done a great job.”
Hunter spent time with local high school athletes at a Planet Fitness in Jacksonville to help the gym promote a free summer pass program that allows teens aged 14-19 to work for free beginning in June and running through the end of August.
Hunter joked that he might never have moved to Georgia had he had such a program growing up in South Florida.
“I wish I would have had this opportunity to be able to come to a gym where I don’t have to pay, don’t have to sign up for anything, just come in and work out, chill with my buddies in the gym, staying out of trouble,” he said.
The event was Hunter’s first media availability since a breakout performance against the Los Angeles Rams in London on Oct. 19. He caught eight passes for 101 yards and a touchdown in a 35-7 loss, and the Jaguars were planning to use him as their No. 1 receiver moving forward.
But he tore his lateral collateral ligament following a bye week and three days before the Jaguars played at Las Vegas. The Jaguars are being cautious with his return.
“We’re really at the mercy of the rehab and the docs in terms of what that looks like in the next steps of getting out on the grass,” coach Liam Coen said. “But really feel no pressure. I think he’s done a phenomenal job.”
The walkthrough wall allowed for much of his progress. Hunter estimates he can “burn out” about 40 reps during a 15-minute session.
“That’s accumulating a ton of reps that he’s not going to be able to get until he is cleared to go,” Coen said.
And the Jaguars insist Hunter will play both ways when he returns. General manager James Gladstone said in January that he expected Hunter to have a “higher emphasis” on defense in 2026.
NFL Network created a stir by suggesting Hunter might see the majority of his repetitions on defense, a notion the team and the player disputed. And it surely wasn’t a coincidence that Hunter spent the team’s first on-field workout solely with the offense.
His ultimate role is still to be determined, but the Jaguars expect him to be a factor alongside receivers Jakobi Meyers, Brian Thomas Jr. and Parker Washington as well potentially a starting cornerback opposite Montaric Brown.
He’s planning to spend equal time on both sides during OTAs and expects to be fully cleared by training camp.
“Not being on the field, you can’t retain a lot unless you go in there and be focused and try to learn as much as you can every single day because you’re not getting those live reps," he said. "I try to sneak in and get as much knowledge as I can from everybody and try to help the younger guys.”
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