Jaguars' Travis Hunter development right on schedule despite slow start

The Jacksonville Jaguars traded up to Travis Hunter second overall in the 2025 NFL Draft because they believe he's a sports-altering talent. They paid a hefty price to make it happen, and three games into the season, they've yet to get a meaningful return on their investment.

Hunter has hauled in 10 receptions for 76 and played 92 snaps at corner. Those are solid numbers for a two-way player, but certainly not what you expect from a top-5 draft selection. But despite his slow start, head coach Liam Coen isn't pressing the panic button anytime soon.

The Jaguars can do a better job of helping Travis Hunter

Liam Coen met with the local media Wednesday and said that Travis Hunter isn't behind in his development, but the team can do more to help him.

"I wouldn't say he's behind. I think we can probably do a better job of helping him in some ways. We had a great talk with Trav after this past game, in terms of just man like, all right, 'how can we help you and put you?' Because guys, right, what is he learning? It's a lot," Coen told reporters (5:14 mark). "So we've got to, I think, be a little bit more diligent in terms of putting him in positions to maybe not have to do as many moving parts, so that we can just let him go play."

Coen continued, "You saw, you know, he catches the out cut the other day and makes multiple people miss. And so that's what we're trying to continue to push, and that's got to be on us as well. Yeah, he has a hand in it, for sure, absolutely, but I do think we can help him more."

This is the Hunter out cut Coen was referring to.

Related: The Jaguars areadly stuck wishing they had waited to trade Tank Bigsby

The Jaguars are taking a long-term approach with Travis Hunter

On the one hand, it's easy to understand where all the criticism is coming from. Travis Hunter was the highest-rated prospect in the 2025 draft at both receiver and corner. Couple that with the fact that he was dubbed a generational talent, and it's not particularly shocking that his dearth of game-changing plays has gotten the spotlight.

That said, it's easy to forget how complicated the transition to the pros is, and Hunter is making it while learning the nuances of two positions. And that's the thing, players' readiness coming out of the draft is always variable, and it may take the reigning Heisman Trophy winner a bit of time to hit his stride.

Sure, the Jaguars would like to see Hunter have a bigger impact, but they also understand that this is a long-term project and can't just scrap their plan just because he's off to a slow start. If anything, Liam Coen is right to see how the team can adjust the process so they can make the most out of the West Palm Beach, Florida native.

It's also worth noting that Hunter is already showing glimpses of his playmaking skills. While he didn't make any big plays against the Houston Texans in Week 3, he didn't allow any long completions and held his own against Christian Kirk in coverage.

Ultimately, it may be a tad frustrating to not see Travis Hunter make a bigger impact right now, but as long as the Jaguars stick to the process, he'll eventually put it all together. In fact, don't be surprised if by the end of the season, he's turned into a key cog on both offense and defense.

Here are other Jaguars stories you may also like: