As much criticism as Jacksonville Jaguars GM James Gladstone has drawn for giving up a first-round pick to move up three spots in last year's draft for Travis Hunter, it's all about to pay off in a big way.
"Fleecing" allegations have made the rounds aplenty in the wake of Hunter's underwhelming rookie season, which ended in injury. The Cleveland Browns own the Jags' first-round pick this year in addition to their own.
Meanwhile, Gladstone laid the groundwork elsewhere for a 13-win team that won the AFC South and has its arrow pointing way up in 2026 and beyond.
The haters will be inclined to dunk on Gladstone even more now that Hunter is making the move to cornerback full-time. However, that is precisely what will vindicate the 35-year-old exec.
Jaguars star Travis Hunter is about to become the elite CB1 he was always meant to be
If you just take a glimpse at the NFL's traditional trade value chart (via Drafttek), the Jags have already proven that the Travis Hunter trade was worthwhile — provided he holds up his end of the bargain in the coming years.
Bear with me. The trade value chart is based on points, which signifies how valuable those picks are. The gap between the second and fifth overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft is a 900-point difference. Compare that to where Cleveland's own top pick is this year (sixth overall) and where the pick the Browns got from Jacksonville is slotted (24th), and it's an 860-point difference.
So although Hunter himself had little to do with validating the immediate on-field results of Gladstone's splashy trade, from a pure value and compensation perspective, the Jags were in the right.
Hunter was initially viewed as a wide receiver who'd pair with Brian Thomas Jr. as a dynamic duo of the future. Remember those talking points last offseason?
Things change. It's the NFL. News flash, it's changing all the time.
Thomas struggled through a sophomore slump in 2025. Hunter had rookie growing pains while trying to play both ways. The Jags transformed their offense with a deadline trade for veteran Jakobi Meyers. All of a sudden, Parker Washington exploded onto the scene to be the team's leading receiver.
Combine all that with both Jags incumbent boundary corners set to hit free agency, and it's the perfect storm to send Hunter to the defensive side of the ball on a full-time basis. Well, with a little bit of a wide receiver role mixed in.
Own-horn tooting time for a sec. As a person who profited greatly on Derek Stingley Jr. being the third overall pick, believing he was the best cornerback prospect I've ever seen, I thought Hunter was on Stingley's level coming out of college.
Not exactly a hot take. I did worry, though, that Hunter trying to play offense would water down his impact on Jacksonville's secondary. And so it did.
Hunter's knowledge of route concepts and uncanny ball skills make him all the more lethal at cornerback. Then you blend that with his elite change of direction, twitchy athleticism, natural instincts, and overall confident swagger, and you have a pretty special player.
Gladstone and the front office know ball. The coaching staff knows ball. They see what myself and many others see.
Thus, it comes as no surprise that NFL Network's Cameron Wolfe reported the Jags brass reached a consensus on Hunter's best path forward:
Did the emergence of Jakobi Meyers affect the decision to move Travis Hunter?
— 1010 XL / 92.5 FM (@1010XL) February 17, 2026
NFL Network Analyst, @CameronWolfe joins @RyanGreen1010XL to talk about this and much more!
📽️WATCH THE FULL VIDEO HERE⬇️:https://t.co/A20C5DcJpv#duuuval | #Jaguars pic.twitter.com/UX6j9yXu4D
Now that Hunter is stepping into the role he was always meant for, I'm here to tell you: He's going to be in the conversation with Stingley as the best cornerback in the NFL. If not this coming season, the year after. That's how phenomenal Hunter is as a pure talent.
Jags head coach Liam Coen is one of the elite offensive minds in football. He'll still work Hunter in on offense. That said, this new, predominantly cornerback version of Hunter is about to turn the NFL upside down.
Thoughts and prayers to Browns fans. Allegedly "winning" the Hunter trade is about all they can cling to as a victory of any kind these days.
With how good Cleveland's last draft class was, what does the Dawg Pound faithful calculate their odds being to nail another round of picks? It's tough for any team to do that. Never mind the friggin' Browns!
I guess if Mason Graham is a Hall of Famer, that's the way this trade goes Cleveland's way. Otherwise, I don't see it. Because I see Hunter with a gold jacket and a bust in Canton someday.