Jaguars HC Liam Coen Shares Encouraging Update on Rookie Travis Hunter’s 2-Way Development

The Jacksonville Jaguars selected the most unique player in the entire 2025 draft class with their first-round pick. Travis Hunter played both wide receiver and cornerback at the college level, and excelled at both, drawing league-wide attention and prompting the Jaguars to trade up for the No.2 overall pick to secure him.

Head coach Liam Coen has already shared some insight into how he plans to use Hunter, offering updates on how the rookie is currently being integrated into the system and how he’s handling the dual workload on both offense and defense.

Liam Coen Gives Insight On How Travis Hunter Is Practicing on Offense and Defense

One of the biggest questions raised by the media following Hunter’s arrival in the NFL was how realistic it would be to expect him to handle the responsibilities of playing on both offense and defense. After all, it would require doubling his film study, practice reps, and physical workload on the field.

Cohen, who recently took over as head coach of the Jaguars, stated shortly after the draft that the initial plan was to integrate Hunter into the offense first, then gradually introduce him on defense.

When asked if Hunter was already practicing with both offense and defense, the coach provided new details on how the Jaguars are currently distributing Hunter’s early responsibilities and what the long-term plan looks like moving forward.

DE Travon Walker, HC Liam Coen, and DC Anthony Campanile meet with the media.@Dream_Finders | #DUUUVAL https://t.co/33mk0oW4gm

— Jacksonville Jaguars (@Jaguars) May 27, 2025

“We won’t put him in that situation, to have him do that. Although I’m sure he’d probably want to, yeah, I’m sure. But at the end of the day, he’s trying to, he still meets defensively every day that he’s on offense. So he’s getting the mental part of it and being able to catch up on some of the communication, some of the corrections off the film, from the defensive side of the ball,” Cohen said.

It wouldn’t be wise to have the player take part in every practice session and risk injury due to overtraining. During his offensive reps, the same film used to correct the offense is also reviewed to study the defense, allowing Hunter to absorb the theoretical side of the game alongside the team.

The coach also mentioned that the plan is to integrate him more fully into the defense as the season progresses, once they have a better understanding of how to manage his workload. Still, it was clear from his comments that the team will eventually need to give in and let Hunter take live reps with the defense as well.

The Jaguars will open the season at home against the Carolina Panthers, and fans are expected to show up in force to see a player who, beyond being charismatic and fully committed since day one, brings a renewed sense of hope to the franchise.