Travis Hunter Receives High Praise From Jaguars Pro Bowler Despite Slow Start

Josh Hines-Allen sees greatness in his young teammate.
Jacksonville Jaguars two-way star Travis Hunter received praise from teammate Josh Hines-Allen.
Jacksonville Jaguars two-way star Travis Hunter received praise from teammate Josh Hines-Allen. / Doug Engle/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Travis Hunter has had a bit of a slow start to his NFL career, but at least one of his Jaguars teammates thinks he's destined for greatness.

Josh Hines-Allen was a guest on Tuesday's episode of the Jim Rome Show and had nothing but praise for his young teammate.

"Travis is a hell of a player, a heck of a teammate too," Hines-Allen said. "We had to get on him a little bit earlier because of the rookie stuff, but once he kind of dialed in on that, he kind of accepted the role that he's in. Man, he's a hell of a player, he's gonna be a hell of a player for us... We've got one of them dudes. I think Travis has all the capabilities to be the next great thing for us."

That's high praise from a two-time Pro Bowler. Hunter has loads of talent, and he's a big part of Jacksonville's future. There's a reason the franchise traded two first-round picks, a second-rounder, and a fourth-rounder to the Browns to move up five spots and select the two-way talent at No. 2 in the 2025 NFL draft. While he hasn't translated that talent into production yet, Hines-Allen seems confident he will.

Travis Hunter Is Off to a Slow Start in the NFL

Through three games, Hunter has yet to make much of an impact statistically on either side of the ball. As a receiver, he has 10 catches for 76 yards and has been targeted 16 times. He has yet to get into the end zone. At cornerback, he has made nine tackles and broken up one pass.

Pro Football Focus has given Hunter an overall grade of 55.0 at receiver, which ranks him 71st out of the 78 wideouts who qualify. PFF likes him much better at cornerback, where he has a grade of 68.2.

In 2024, Hunter won the Heisman Trophy, while also winning the Biletnikoff Award as the nation's top receiver and the Bednarik Award as the country's top defender. The 22-year-old is a unique talent and is having to learn two positions at once. He might have a tougher transition than other rookie in his class.

At least one of his teammates sees greatness in him, even after a slow start.


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Ryan Phillips
RYAN PHILLIPS

Ryan Phillips is a senior writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. He has worked in digital media since 2009, spending eight years at The Big Lead before joining SI in 2024. Phillips also co-hosts The Assembly Call Podcast about Indiana Hoosiers basketball and previously worked at Bleacher Report. He is a proud San Diego native and a graduate of Indiana University’s journalism program.