‘Make Him Lock In on One Side’ – Raiders Star Maxx Crosby Makes Feelings Clear on Travis Hunter’s Two-Way Future in NFL

Jacksonville Jaguars’ Travis Hunter is among the most unique players in NFL history, and how the team utilizes his two-way potential is the talk of the town. He played on both sides of the ball at Colorado and went on to pick up the Heisman Trophy in 2024.

Hunter now has a chance to carve out a rare place in league history as one of the few modern two-way players, but the Raiders’ star defender, Maxx Crosby, believes he should be locked onto one side first.

Maxx Crosby Suggests Travis Hunter Won’t Be Allowed To Play On Both Sides of the Ball

Coming off an incredible campaign in Colorado, the main question mark behind Hunter’s game is how his two-way style will translate to the NFL. Being a top receiver in the league is hard enough, so how will the team manage his number of snaps to ensure he has fresh legs to play on both sides of the ball?

Crosby gave his verdict on the latest episode of his podcast, The Rush, and claimed Hunter would be allowed to play either on offense or defense.
“Make him lock in on one side,” Crosby said. “‘You’re going to be a starter here, but we’re going to have some packages for you on defense or offense, whatever it is, and just keep it simple. You’re going to go in, these are your plays, boom, know these plays, and go out there.

“If you just try to dump all the information on him at one time, that just seems unfair to the player, and I don’t think coaches are stupid. They’re going to do their best to protect their asset. It’s a business at the end of the day. You have to have him out there for the duration of a full season. So, it will be interesting.”

However, Hunter has repeatedly expressed his desire to continue playing on both sides of the ball. Jacksonville head coach Liam Coen also didn’t rule out the Colorado alum playing on both sides of the ball, but said that the plan was to integrate him into the offense first and then gradually introduce him on defense.

Coen’s statement is supported by the fact that Hunter is currently listed as Jacksonville’s starting slot receiver and as a backup outside cornerback. He’ll likely not begin the season starting both ways, but it’s hard to imagine that the Jaguars won’t be able to create packages for him to play both ways in each game.

Hunter had 15 receiving touchdowns and four interceptions last year at Colorado. With nearly 100 receptions and a total of 1,258 receiving yards, he exploded with his best receiving season yet.

The preseason will be interesting, but Jaguars fans likely won’t get a look at what the team truly sees in Hunter until a few weeks have passed in the regular season. His number of tackles also increased from 2023 to 2024, improving by 16 in two years. With nine interceptions and 24 career receiving touchdowns, the Jaguars have a potentially game-changing player, depending on how they utilize him.