He’s the face of college football, and he’ll soon be the face of an NFL franchise. With his 2025 NFL Draft scouting report, where does Colorado’s hybrid wide receiver/cornerback Travis Hunter rank in the upcoming class, and at which position does he translate best?
Travis Hunter’s Draft Profile and Measurements
- Height: 6’1″
- Weight: 185 pounds
- Position: Cornerback/Wide Receiver
- School: Colorado
- Current Year: Junior
The Greatest Show on Turf — Volume 2 — may be upon us. His name is Travis Hunter.
The Colorado Buffaloes football program — in spite of its 4-8 record last season — has quickly become a source of media frenzy. Head coach Deion “Prime” Sanders and quarterback Shedeur Sanders bear some responsibility for this. But so, too, does Hunter.
Hunter was Prime’s prized recruiting victory in the NFL Hall of Famer’s time at Jackson State, but Prime had to fight to get him. Hunter was as coveted as any recruit in modern history — a consensus five-star talent out of Collins Hill High School in Suwanee, Ga.
The best recruits establish themselves as a cut above, and that’s what Hunter did. As a junior, he caught 137 passes for 1,746 yards and 24 touchdowns, and he also logged eight interceptions on the defensive side of the ball. As a senior, despite missing five games, he put up 1,128 yards, 10 TDs, and four INTs.
At first, Hunter committed to Florida State — returning to his home state of Florida — but Sanders would soon sway him to come to Jackson State. Hunter flipped his commitment, becoming the first five-star recruit ever to sign with an HBCU and FCS school.
Together, the Sanders father-son duo and Hunter helped revitalize the Jackson State football program. In 2022, the Tigers went 12-1, and Hunter was an asset on defense, notching two INTs, a pick-six, and eight pass deflections.
In 2023, Sanders made the move to Colorado, and Hunter followed along with Shedeur. Hunter would go on to be one of the few bright spots during the Buffaloes’ 2023 campaign. On offense, he caught 57 passes for 721 yards and five scores. On defense, he added three INTs, five PBUs, and two tackles for loss — and all this in just nine games.
Hunter has played both WR and CB at a high level, but how does he translate at each spot, and which position might be best for him at the NFL level? Could he somehow carry on his two-way role in the NFL?
Below, we’ll set out to answer all these questions.
Hunter’s CB Scouting Report
Strengths
- Tall, lean, and impressively fluid cover man with decent proportional length.
- Has outrageous hip sink and flexibility for his size, allowing for seamless transitions.
- Can make sharp 270-degree transitions and channel instant acceleration out of breaks.
- Combines uncommon redirection freedom with elite explosiveness out of transitions.
- Has the elite snap and corrective twitch to jolt in and out of breaks with rapid speed.
- Flashes elite zone awareness in Cover 2, recognizing and undercutting corner routes.
- Elite 2-on-1 pre-route recognition allows him to bait QBs and swiftly capitalize.
- Sharp processor who can pass off and carry routes in zone with rare proficiency.
- Certified route bandit with his telepathic spatial IQ, instincts, and eye discipline in zone.
- Can use hyper-elite fluidity and instant decelerative capacity to clamp down on hitches.
- Plays with feet first in man coverage and can vary his technique based on situation.
- Generational playmaking threat who gravitates to the ball with GPS-like tracking.
- Has flashed the ability to play through the receiver’s hands with his back to the ball.
- Shows off superb long speed and range in recovery, and can close gaps in pursuit.
- Willing support participant who can square up boundary runners and wrap on tackles.
Weaknesses
- Is lighter than average for a CB and could stand to add more mass to his frame.
- On occasion, can be uncontrolled when hinging around in zone, drifting past breaks.
- At times exhibits a slight false step in press-man, which can impact timing and leverage.
- Sometimes idles too long off the snap in press-man, allowing receivers to get a step.
- On occasion, turns his hips upfield too early, allowing WRs easy paths inside on breaks.
- Despite elite ball skills, can be more consistent getting his eyes around on the boundary.
- Sometimes resorts to grabbing when attempting to stay in larger receivers’ frames.
- Can get outmuscled by stronger receivers in contested situations.
- Weight can undermine his ability to prevent displacement against boundary run blocks.
- Struggles to control positioning as a support defender, and can be re-routed in space.
- Sometimes hesitates to engage blocks head-on, which can also play him out of position.
- Long speed, while stellar, may be a notch below the elite mark.
Hunter’s WR Scouting Report
Strengths
- Tall and lean receiving threat with above-average length and reach.
- Has elite explosive capacity and fleet-footed acceleration, as well as vertical speed.
- Snappy, energized lateral mover who can send defenders lurching with sudden spins.
- Has shown he can stack defenders off split releases, using swipes and jabs to break free.
- With his speed and bend, can carve past zone and off-man defenders and find space.
- Hip sink, paired with speed, burst, and agility, fuels an iron-clad separation framework.
- Flashes excellent plant-and-drive efficiency, cutting extremely tight angles on breaks.
- Can execute 90-degree cuts off violent jab steps and explode outside on corner routes.
- Can press upfield into stems and sustain rapid acceleration through route transitions.
- Has a functional release package and route tree, and fluidity yields him vast versatility.
- Has the flexibility and bend to make logic-defying positioning adjustments downfield.
- Possesses absurd ball-tracking skills, and is authoritative snaring passes with his hands.
- Has stellar hand technique and coordinating instincts and can easily gather RAC throws.
- Hyper-elite catching instincts and body control routinely guide him to the ball.
- Has near-superhuman stamina and versatility between the boundary and the slot.
Weaknesses
- Is lighter than average for a WR and could stand to add more mass to his frame.
- Sometimes works too far upfield on releases, drifting into his defender’s frame.
- Can improve tempo and control on releases to properly off-set and attack upfield.
- Route tree, while functional, still has room to expand further with multi-layered routes.
- On occasion, works himself off-balance when trying to offset with diamond releases.
- At times, can be quicker to enter the scramble drill and seek second-wave separation.
- Sometimes struggles to dictate catch positioning with defenders inside his frame.
- Naturally lacks high-end contact balance and play strength after the catch.
- Long speed, while stellar, may be a notch below the elite mark.
- Is not a notable blocking presence, and his usage limits his run-blocking exposure.
- Will have to add mass and improve run blocking to avoid being a pass-down tell.
Current Draft Projection and Summary
Entering the 2025 NFL Draft cycle, Hunter grades out as an early-to-mid first-round prospect at both WR and CB. He’s in contention for the top spot at both positions, and he has the potential to be a blue-chip prospect worthy of top-10 capital by season’s end.
As both a WR and a CB, two traits stand out as central qualities to Hunter’s game: His hyper-elite athletic and mobility profile, and his arguably generational ball skills and catch-point instincts.
Hunter simply moves differently — with awe-inspiring explosiveness, twitch, bend, and sink for his 6’1″ frame. He can use these dynamic traits either to gash coverages as a route runner, generate RAC yards in space, or match WRs and transition in zone coverage with effortless ease.
As a CB, Hunter’s ability to sense where the ball is going and position himself to make plays is truly extraordinary, and it separates him as a deadly turnover-generating force. But those same catching instincts also make him very reliable as a receiving threat on offense.
To start the 2025 NFL Draft cycle, Hunter is my WR1, slightly over Luther Burden and Tetairoa McMillan, and he’s my CB3 behind only Will Johnson and Benjamin Morrison.
At the NFL level, Hunter might be better served to focus on one position more than the other to avoid spreading himself too thin. But this is also true: We simply haven’t seen anything like Hunter. And he could be the rare prospect who pulls off being a true two-way player.
To reach the blue-chip range at either position, adding additional mass and improving his play strength will go a long way. But at WR, Hunter’s preferred brand of physicality — deconstruction as a separator rather than obstruction as a coverage defender — may be more translatable long-term.
At WR, Hunter would be a dynamic three-level threat as a movement-Z receiver. And he’d be well-equipped to dominate in a space-dominated modern NFL, so long as he can become a competent run blocker.
Regardless of position designation, if Hunter can improve in the areas that are more attuned to physicality, he can be a blue-chip and top-10 prospect in the 2025 NFL Draft with the transcendent athleticism and playmaking instincts to be a side-diverse weapon.