The New York Jets have had an increasingly eventful summer. After finally moving on from the Aaron Rodgers saga, a wave of negative reports from players raised new questions about the team’s internal operations. Still, with a new head coach in Aaron Glenn and quarterback Justin Fields now in the fold, there’s renewed optimism for the future.
That future, however, will depend on surrounding those leaders with top-tier talent. And according to one former second-round pick turned analyst, the Jets might get extremely lucky — landing a player many believe is the best prospect in the entire 2025 NFL Draft class.
New York Jets Welcome Travis Hunter
Travis Hunter had a historic and unprecedented 2024 campaign, capping it off by winning the Heisman Trophy — the most prestigious award in college football. Playing nearly every offensive and defensive snap, Hunter carved out a one-of-a-kind role in the sport.
As a true dual-threat — lining up at both wide receiver and cornerback—his skillset was unmatched, and his athleticism was off the charts. He logged a snap share of over 84% and solidified himself as one of the most dynamic players in the 2025 draft class.
But according to Maurice Jones-Drew, Hunter could slide further down the draft board than expected. Now a color analyst for the Los Angeles Rams, Jones-Drew enjoyed a nine-year NFL career, earning three Pro Bowl and All-Pro nods and leading the league in rushing in 2011 before retiring in 2015.
In his recently released mock draft on NFL.com, Jones-Drew made headlines by projecting Hunter to fall to No. 7 overall — where the Jets would be in perfect position to take him. Meanwhile, Tetaiora McMillan was slotted inside the top five.
“I’m guessing the Jets would be thrilled — and very surprised — to see the Heisman Trophy winner available here,” Jones-Drew wrote. “Hunter is a generational talent with the ability to play on both sides of the ball for a team that has plenty of room for improvement at both cornerback and receiver.”
The Jets ranked 15th in defense and 19th in offense in PFSN’s respective Defense+ and Offense+ metrics in 2024 — leaving no doubt about where help is needed.
Given that need, New York may be one of the few teams willing to let Hunter continue playing both ways, which he’s said is extremely important to him as he enters the NFL.
That said, it still feels unlikely that Hunter will fall that far. In fact, Brentley Weissman’s latest mock draft from PFSN has him going fourth overall to the Jets’ AFC East rivals, the New England Patriots.
Explaining the pick, Weissman wrote: “The New England Patriots can take many different approaches here. They will ultimately take the best player, Travis Hunter, who can excel as a receiver or a corner. Drake Maye gave Patriots fans a lot of reasons to be excited after his stellar rookie season.”