Recently, Sports Illustrated’s Pat Forde broke down Colorado Buffaloes cornerback/wide receiver Travis Hunter’s excellence on the field, along with his passion for bass fishing, the subject of Colorado teammate Shedeur Sanders’ NFL Draft stock came up.
Travis Hunter’s Thoughts on Shedeur Sanders’ Draft Stock
Hunter commented on the idea of Sanders being in the same tier as Cam Ward for top quarterback in the class, only for his stock to seemingly take a bit of a hit recently in the piece by Forde.
“It’s just hating,” Hunter says. “They dislike Coach Prime, so they’ll try to take shots at us. A lot of people are going to make a mistake if they pass him up.”
The same cannot be said for Hunter, who’s widely expected to be selected within the top three of the 2025 NFL Draft, with the Cleveland Browns and New York Giants viewed as his most likely landing spots.
During this process, Hunter has become a regular topic on sports shows, and he’s aware of it.
“It’s a blessing to have people debate about me, but it doesn’t change anything that I’m going to do,” Hunter says. “People are only talking about me because my name is hot, so they don’t know where I came from, don’t know where I grew up. They don’t understand my story. I just let people talk.”
Recently, Hunter made a bold claim that he’d rather stop playing football entirely if he were ever asked to play only one side of the ball.
“It’s never playing football again. Because I’ve been doing it my whole life, and I love being on the football field. I feel like I could dominate on each side of the ball, so I really enjoy doing it.”
Where PFSN Mocks Hunter and Sanders
In a recent two-round mock draft by Cameron Sheath at PFSN, he placed Hunter at No. 3 overall to the Giants.
“Sanders was an option here, too, but Giants general manager Joe Schoen’s career is reliant on the team being competitive in 2025. Hunter is the second blue-chip prospect off the board and, like [Abdul] Carter in Cleveland, would give the Giants one of the league’s best partnerships.
“In this case, though, Hunter would be paired up with 2024 first-round pick Malik Nabers to give New York one of the best receiving duos in football. The acceleration of both players would give the offense an advantage on every passing down.
“Hunter also possesses incredible body control and contested-catch ability and is arguably an elite receiver prospect without his dual-threat ability. That versatility is more than just a bonus, though.
“Hunter would immediately be one of the best young corners in the NFL, with the team having to decide where his primary focus should be. The historical significance of a draft selection is never clear at the time, but Hunter has the potential to be a generation-defining prospect in the NFL.”
As for Sanders, Sheath has him going No. 9 overall to the now quarterback-needy New Orleans Saints.
“I originally penciled in this pick with the idea that Sanders could sit for a year. But with Derek Carr now trending toward missing the 2025 season with a shoulder injury, Sanders could find himself thrust into a starting role.
“I do not doubt that Sanders has the mental strength to deal with an immediate starting job, but it would be ideal for him to iron out a few creases before being folded in half by NFL pass rushers.
“The Saints have continued to push their financial problems into the future (why pay if you don’t have to, right?) and reportedly restructured Carr’s deal again during the offseason. With a now-desperate need at quarterback, Sanders would allow the Saints to compete in 2025, while his rookie contract would allow them to balance the books in the long term.”
