Jaguars Filled Two Biggest Needs in One Swipe

With the selection of Travis Hunter, the Jacksonville Jaguars got both the draft's best cornerback and wide receiver.

The Jacksonville Jaguars first-round pick, Colorado Buffaloes wide receiver and defensive back Travis Hunter, left, poses with his jersey during a press conference Friday, March 25, 2025 at Miller Electric Center in Jacksonville, Fla. as Head Coach Liam Coen, center and General Manager James Gladstone, right, watch. [Doug Engle/Florida Times-Union] / Doug Engle/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

A new era has truly kicked off in Jacksonville.

The Jaguars made the 2025 NFL Draft's biggest and boldest moves with their trade for Travis Hunter, dealing their second-round selection and next year's first-round pick for a chance to land the best player in the draft.

It was a risky move for the Jaguars, but one they clearly had all the confidence in the world to make.

Simply put, the Jaguars believe they have a potentially generation-defining star on their hands. There isn't a Travis Hunter in every draft, and they made sure to do anything they could to find the one that finally came around.

In terms of blue-chip talent and star power, Hunter is already amongst the Jaguars' most important players before he has even taken his first NFL snap. And the reason for that is because Hunter has given the Jaguars a chance to fix their two biggest roster holes with just one selection.

No other player in the draft -- heck, no other player in football -- could do that. But Hunter can. He is both the draft's best receiver and it's best cornerback. If he hits his potential as a receiver, he could be a Justin Jefferson-level talent. If he hits his ceiling as a cornerback he could be a Champ Bailey-level player.

Adding either one of those types of players to the Jaguars' roster would immediately make the Jaguars' AFC South contenders. They now have dynamic duos at both cornerback and receiver with Hunter filling in alongside Tyson Campbell and Brian Thomas Jr., and the Jaguars' ceiling could truly reach new heights as a result.

Would the Jaguars' first-round pick in 2026 be able to make the impact Hunter can potentially make on either side of the ball? Unlikely.

"As we sit here, Travis Hunter is a Jacksonville Jaguar, and really what comes to mind for me, thinking about the sport of football and really the power of the game itself, right? It's capacity to ignite belief -- belief in ourselves, belief in others, belief in achieving what many may deem impossible. Travis Hunter, he embodies belief. He's a rare person. He's a rare player," Jaguars general manager James Gladstone said on Friday.

"But he's also a reminder that the boundaries of the game of football were built to be challenged. So, the decision to select him was actually a statement, a statement for how we plan to move, who we are, and we want him to be nothing more than him because, when he is, he elevates the space around him. From the football field to the city to the game of football itself, Travis Hunter is who we've been hunting up. Couldn't be more jacked to be sitting right here beside him and introduce you all to the man of the hour.”

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