Throughout offseason programs up to this point, Jacksonville Jaguars’ second overall pick Travis Hunter has spent the entirety of each practice on one side of the ball, whether that be offense or defense, depending on what the plan is that day.
Previously, head coach Liam Coen had alluded to Hunter playing on both offense and defense during practices once the season starts, specifically when going through third-down or red-zone installs for the week.
Advertisement
However, Hunter’s opportunity to play both ways in practice will come well before Week 1, with Coen mentioning after Tuesday’s practice that this two-way play on the same day would begin during training camp.
Up to this point, Hunter has spent more time at the wide receiver position on the practice field than at cornerback, which was part of the plan that Coen and GM James Gladstone described following the NFL draft.
As he’s been acclimated on the offensive side of the ball in the early portion of offseason programs, Hunter has then gotten more cornerback responsibilities added to his plate on the practice field, although since he arrived in Jacksonville, he’s been in the defensive meetings, along with learning the playbook and terminology.
Obviously, it takes a special player to be able to play both ways at the NFL level, but as Coen noted on Tuesday, one aspect that allows Hunter to do that is his physical conditioning.
Advertisement
“I think what helps him do things right a lot is that he’s so well conditioned that, from a mental fatigue standpoint, doesn’t seem to occur all that much out here, where he can kind of just run,” Coen said. “He’s been in altitude for a few years now, but he is in very good physical shape when it comes to being able to run all day and that’s something that ultimately, once the legs start to go, the mind starts to go and you don’t really see that all that often with him, he just keeps going.
“So that’s been exciting to see, and he’s going to have to lean into that as he goes here and the reps start to go up and he starts to play offense and defense on the same day, which will occur in training camp.”
Since the decision was made prior to the NFL draft that the Jaguars were going to move up to get Hunter, a detailed–and fluid–plan was established to be able to maximize his abilities on both sides of the ball. One of the next steps in that progression will be when training camp arrives and Hunters sees snaps at wide receiver and cornerback on the same day.
This article originally appeared on Jaguars Wire: Jaguars’ minicamp: Liam Coen on Travis Hunter’s practice plan