JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Travis Hunter admitted to feeling anxious before his NFL debut, where he played in both facets of the game on Saturday night.The rookie receiver and cornerback for the Jacksonville Jaguars, assured that this feeling is usual before each game.
Hunter participated in 18 plays in the 31-25 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers at EverBank Stadium. He played 10 offensive plays, all in the first series of the game, achieving two receptions for 9 yards. A third reception was nullified by an illegal block penalty.According to data, Hunter ran six routes, five of them from the slot. He tied with Brian Thomas Jr. for the most targets from Trevor Lawrence, with two.In defense, Hunter was on the field for eight plays and missed a tackle.Head coach Liam Coen assessed his performance as solid.“I was a little nervous at first. But after the first play, I was fine,” Hunter commented.
Travis Hunter
“He made a couple of good catches on some option routes and missed a defensive tackle, which is what I noticed. I’ll have to review the video to see how he operated defensively a bit more, but offensively, I think he made the right decisions on those option routes. He made a good catch, almost broke away on that one where Trevor [Lawrence] threw it behind him on that third down, but I’ll have to watch the video a bit more to know more,” said Coen.
Liam CoenHunter’s missed tackle was against Steelers running back Kaleb Johnson near the line of scrimmage. There was also a play where there appeared to be confusion in coverage, allowing a Steelers receiver to get behind Hunter inside the 10-yard line. Although the ball wasn’t thrown into that area, defensive backs coach Anthony Perkins spoke with Hunter as he returned to the bench, and safety Andrew Wingard also approached him to talk.Hunter’s participation on offense aligns with his usage in training camp. In the first 12 practices, Hunter has participated in 140 offensive plays and 116 defensive plays in 11-on-11 drills.“We can put it [the missed tackle] aside and get back to work. I know what I have to do next time,” Hunter said.
Travis Hunter
