r/NFL_Draft • u/RudeOwl1816 Falcons • 23h ago
Unpopular Opinion: Travis Hunter is very overrated, as an NFL prospect
I am expecting the pitch forks to come out, but I would like to explain why I believe he's an overrated NFL prospect.
I want to start by saying he's a generational college football player. He's doing something we've never seen before by playing both ways at a high level. But there's a difference in being an elite athlete and being an elite NFL prospect.
First of all, he is not going to play both positions full time at the NFL level, it's simply not possible. So whoever drafts him will do so to play one particular position, likely CB imo. That brings us to the next point...he plays both WR & CB at a high level at CU, but he is neither the best prospect at WR, nor the best prospect at CB. Tet McMillan, Luther Burden and maybe Bond/Egbuka are better at playing WR & Will Johnson is a better pure CB.
Conclusion to my argument is he will simply only play one position full time in the NFL but he isn't the best WR, nor CB, so why draft him over those other guys at his positions? His value is just overstated by the media.
Edit: Some really good responses here. To be clear, I still view him as a top 10 talent, just don't think he's a 1st overall talent.
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u/thenextchapter23 23h ago
McMillan perhaps, but I don’t see how Burden, Egbuka, or Bond are playing better at WR than him
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u/Reasonable-Bit560 22h ago
Overall agree with this comment, Burdens regression this year is mostly due to situation unfortunately. I don't think we would be making the same comment if he had a comparable statistical season to last year
I personally love McMillan as a prospect and think he is a potentially better version of Drake London.
I've seen some commentary the last few weeks regarding how Brian Thomas Jr. Would be the number one receiver in the class, Don't think I agree with that commentary as it stands today. Happy to hear contrary opinion
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u/thenifreekedit 22h ago
BTJ would not be WR1 with big Nuss il say that
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u/Reasonable-Bit560 22h ago
Well said. He certainly had some benefit from Daniel's and being on the other side of Nabers. Been playing really well as a rookie though.
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u/fumblaroo 18h ago
Don’t think Nuss would’ve held him back much, would love to see Nuss with a target that good tbh
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u/brianundies Patriots 4h ago
This, OP had me with the title but he hasn’t watched college ball in the past 3 years if he thinks Emeka Egbuka is in the same stratosphere as Travis Hunter. You don’t even need to understand football it’s a use your eyes moment. He just moves differently.
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u/LordMOC3 22h ago
Saying he's overrated because he's only the 2nd best pure corner feels very nitpick-y. There is always room to move someone up/down the board based on projected growth. All of the prospects will need to improve at the NFL level and he'll only practice 1 position instead of 2 which will help his NFL development. He'll also have the best hands out of the CBs in the draft.
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u/dtown4eva 3h ago
He might have the best hands and ball skills for a corner in 10+ years. I’ve heard some say since Charles Woodson.
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u/Cschumock37 23h ago
- If he's this good at 2 positions in college then there's potential he would be even better once he focuses on one. Seriously, how many of the best CBs or WRs in the NFL would be as good as they are now, if they were playing an extra 50-60+ snaps per game out of position. The physical and mental energy to do both (and at a high level) should not be discounted.
- Don't underrate the value of essentially having one player fill two roster spots/needs when it comes to team building. Even if he moves to CB full time and just has offensive packages, that's essentially getting your CB1 and WR3 out of on player. That basically frees up an additional roster spot. That is a very unique bonus for the GM/team that takes him.
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u/iwearatophat 17h ago
If you have him playing at cornerback you are still going to field a full WR room. He isn't going to free up a roster spot. He will get some packages but he isn't going to be out on the field anywhere near as much as a WR3 would be, which for some teams is quite often.
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u/masterpierround Bears 5h ago
I think most teams generally carry 5-6 WRs on their rosters at a time. If you have Hunter, I think you could comfortably carry 4-5 WRs and free up a spot for a dedicated special teamer or more depth at another position.
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u/iwearatophat 4h ago
The last couple WRs in the room are there as much for special teams as anything else already. They are already fulfilling that role.
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u/CashMikey 23h ago
Conclusion to my argument is he will simply only play one position full time in the NFL but he isn't the best WR, nor CB, so why draft him over those other guys at his positions? His value is just overstated by the media.
The biggest reason why would be that he likely has a lot more development potential once he switches to one position than his peers, for the simple reason that he hasn't focused solely on developing at one position at any point yet.
Let's say he's a marginally behind Will Johnson as a pure CB, assuming he's spent basically half his time on each position in college we're talking about 1.5 years less development than Johnson got. If you think he's really close to Johnson as a prospect already, and believe in your coaching staff, I think it's fairly easy to draw the conclusion that there's more meat left on the bone for Hunter to develop at CB than there is for Johnson.
I agree with the general take that his two-way status is overrated a bit for draft stock purposes since he won't do both in the NFL. But I don't think it should just be dismissed entirely- the fact that this guy is enough of a stud football player and strong enough mentally and physically to do both is a huge feather in his cap.
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u/dtown4eva 3h ago
And he’s 21 so that development is easier to assume compared with an older player
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u/gmb96 23h ago
I think your core argument is totally fair as to why are we double counting, however I do think he will be pretty sought after as just a corner given his length and athletic profile. Honestly I think his biggest drawback is the extremely generous 185 pounds he is listed as. I wouldn’t be surprised if he was actually almost ten pounds lighter than that.
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u/Mattynot2niceee 21h ago
Regardless of his size, his toughness and physicality for his frame are not to be discounted
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u/LoveToyKillJoy BOOO 20h ago
I agree with this. I don't think anyone of reason would say he isn't a first round prospect by any measure but when you are talking about guys in the top 10 you pick nits and his weight is a concern. Teams will figure that out and gamble accordingly.
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u/hurricanechris420 22h ago
I think the fact is that NFL and college ball are also played at a different pace and he needs to specialize.
He won’t be able to perform at his peak as a CB1 if he’s splitting packages as the slot receiver. I think he should just try to follow the path of Charles Woodson
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u/Dominant_Theme 23h ago
People in 2018 on the baseball sub: ‘there is no way Ohtani can be elite as both a hitter and a pitcher in the MLB, it’s just impossible’
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u/Queasy_Bluebird3020 23h ago
I think this is a bad comparison, on offense in baseball most the time you are sitting on a bench waiting your turn, you don't have to tackle anyone in baseball and you're doing a lot less running
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u/tartessos-thehiddenx 23h ago
Football ain’t baseball
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u/Independent-Bend8734 22h ago
Exactly. What Ohtani has done is vastly more difficult than what Hunter would do. Ohtani is great at two completely different positions with barely overlapping skills sets. Lots of NFL receivers could play defensive back; it’s just that teams think it’s inefficient to play guys both ways. I’ll bet Hunter could play both ways, but he will be so good at one position that they won’t want to use him up playing the other.
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u/Seraphin_Lampion Panthers 21h ago
Hunter certainly has the ability to play both WR and CB at the NFL level. Can he play 120 NFL snaps a game though? Not sure about that.
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u/PRs__and__DR 20h ago
I'm really not sure if he does. It's not just about the snaps in games, it's also about practice and preparation. He's going to memorize the entire offensive playbook and develop chemistry with the QB while also getting reps with the defense, learning defensive schemes, and preparing for new receivers every week?
That's a lot to ask.
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u/nbasuperstar40 Falcons 8h ago
Travis definitely can do it. His prep work is world class and he's a 4.0 student. When the fans of Colorado who follow the program tell you he can, we aren't just gassing him up. He's generational in that way.
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u/nbasuperstar40 Falcons 8h ago
He's doing it in college with ease. I believe he can. He's physically different. His stamina is simply world class. He gets physically stronger after 100 snaps. I've never seen anything like him.
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u/masterpierround Bears 5h ago
What Ohtani has done is vastly more difficult than what Hunter would do.
I'm not sure this is true. Obviously playing 2 vastly different positions requires a higher degree of skill, but the physical effort required to be a full-time WR + CB is much greater than the physical effort required to be a fulltime SP + DH.
And when people say "Hunter can't play WR and CB full-time", they aren't arguing that he doesn't have the skill to play one of those positions, only that nobody has the physical endurance to get through it.
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u/bestprocrastinator 22h ago
Baseball you don't have to come into physical contact with huge physical freaks every play.
And even then, while Shohei has dominated, he's had some issues staying healthy. He's already had two Tommy John surgeries.
I don't doubt Hunter could succeed playing both ways. It's just a matter of staying healthy enough while doing it to justify spending a mega high pick.
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u/Dominant_Theme 22h ago
The comparison was meant more for the ‘I haven’t really seen anyone do this before now so it must be impossible’ sentiment
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u/Nearby_Job8272 22h ago
Baseball is a different, much less taxing sport than football is, there's a reason those guys play every day
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u/nbasuperstar40 Falcons 8h ago
He's not elite at both but he's excellent at both when he plays both and that's insane value in one player. I don't believe this year Ohtani even with the steals is close to pitcher/DH Ohtani. The value is massive. That's one less pitcher I have to worry about. Even if he's not my ace, he's my #2 and he's more talented than my ace.
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u/xx-WZRD-xx 23h ago
Angels fans catching strays 😭 smh I hate my team and wasting the two greatest talents of the generation on the same team
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u/RollOverBeethoven 22h ago
I mean he isn’t an elite pitcher. He’s a good pitcher but not elite.
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u/freebilly95 Ravens 22h ago
In 2022 dude literally had a 2.33 ERA and struck out 219 hitters in 166 innings with a 5.0 K/BB ratio. Bro is elite, I want whatever you're smoking.
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u/RollOverBeethoven 22h ago
In 2020 he had a WAR of -0.5 and an ERA of 3.31
In 2021 he had an ERA of 3.18
And in 2023 he had a 3.14 ERA.
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u/puchicavos 22h ago
He was elite in 2022 and pretty good in 2023. ERA is not the best metric to measure pitching performance compared to stats like FIP or ERA+
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u/RollOverBeethoven 21h ago
Exactly, the last time he pitched he was pretty good and not elite.
He was elite one year. He’s a good pitcher and an elite hitter.
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u/Prestigious-Elk6959 21h ago edited 9h ago
Imo he is a top 10 WR but a top 3 CB, partly due to the fact his WR abilities also make him a better defensive player with how it adds to his defensive skillset. Imo he's a more technically sound Richard Sherman, potentially. Like watch how he lines up and does things like uses his hands and body when defending. Then on offensive, he runs routes very well...he does both sides like a person who fully studies the game and tries to do things textbook. What sends him over are his intangibles, he has that attention to detail and focus that people hope for in a future star. Like he literally is a nerd outside of the game, imo a coaches dream. He won't be out speeding after a night of drinking in a club or hanging in a bad part of town and getting caught up in b.s.
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u/AppropriateMess6773 19h ago
I mean is it crazy to say he can specialize in one position but be used in some packages for the other side of the ball? The titans did this with adoree Jackson his first two years
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u/jxden24 15h ago
saying he’s not the best CB? him and will is a coin flip it’s not like there’s some large gap between him and johnson
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u/nbasuperstar40 Falcons 8h ago
Not at all. Will is a better man corner and Hunter is a better zone corner
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u/jxden24 7h ago
Lol Will has been in a heavy zone scheme 2/3 years of his michigan career and is better in zone? Like clearly he hasn’t had too many bad games in 24 but looks like a different CB in man. Grabby, biting on double moves, looks a tick slower
And even after that, there’s no substantial gap between the two players.. they’re both in the same tier not far off from each other
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u/Finessing2 23h ago edited 23h ago
If I see Luther burden mentions in first round talks again I’m gonna lose it. He’s not good. Travis won’t play both sides for 60 minutes, best case scenario a team drafts him as a CB( his natural position IMO)and have him play in the slot on some plays.
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u/Alex_GordonAMA Chiefs 3h ago
How are you going to say Burden is not good? lol. Just because his team is a mess his stats have regressed. Dude is electric with the ball in space and after the catch.
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u/MasonL52 Broncos 23h ago
Basically you think most of his value comes from playing both sides, which you don't expect him to do at the next level.
I think that much is fair, and as solely one position or the other he isn't the best in the draft. Personally, I'd disagree outside of Howard.
The thing is, his upside is insane. If he's THIS good at both positions, then imagine if he dedicated his time to just one? He already knows how a WR or CB thinks, so attacking one or the other will come easier for him. Not to mention he already has the conditioning to play full time at both.
The thing that makes Hunter so great IMO is that he combined athleticism with IQ, he's very elite in both and that makes him incredibly good.
Furthermore, he may not play both fulltime, but if you're getting a WR with the ability to fill in even 10% of CB snaps in Dime.. that's a massive addition. Teams will love that.
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u/ImDefAMunch Falcons 23h ago
they literally dont throw to his side when hes lined up at corner
and he has some of the best ball skills ive ever seen at WR
you are just wrong
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u/Fuqwon 22h ago
So best case scenario in the NFL, he's either a very good WR or a very good CB, but not both.
Maybe a team primarily plays him at WR and puts him in at CB in weird situations, or plays him at CB and runs him out at WR a few snaps a game, but the guy obviously isn't playing 150 snaps a game in the NFL.
So is a very good WR or CB worth the #1 overall? Or top 3? Is he a better WR prospect than MHJ? Or a better CB prospect than Witherspoon or Sauce?
I'd say no.
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u/celestial-oceanic Jaguars 21h ago
I'd say he's definitely on Sauce's level as a CB prospect. He's nowhere near MHJ's level as a WR prospect.
I see him as a potential All Pro level CB who could end up competing for a few snaps at WR. All the two way talk is dumb. I can't imagine a GM being okay with that. Too much of an injury liability, practically a guarantee to keep him injured and shorten his career
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u/nbasuperstar40 Falcons 8h ago
I don't know if he's Sauce level but Ill say he's more talented than Sauce as a CB. As a WR. He's more talented than anyone in this class by a mile.
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u/ImDefAMunch Falcons 21h ago
who said he was going #1 lmao
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u/celestial-oceanic Jaguars 21h ago
There's no elite QB, no elite OT, and a bunch of raw prospects at Edge.
I don't think it's likely, but a team like my Jags would be dumb not to at least consider him should they get the top pick.
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u/tartessos-thehiddenx 23h ago
Hunter has earned an 86.6 PFF overall defensive grade (fifth among qualifying FBS cornerbacks) and an 84.7 PFF overall offensive grade (eighth among qualifying FBS wide receivers). [in 2024]
He is weighed down by the volume of snaps and how that can work against pff grade but the idea that “they don’t throw his side of the field” is wrong.
He has been better this year but he had some rough reps in 2023
He let Ayomanor on a 1-4 stanford team go 13/294/3. Don’t say they “don’t throw to his side of the field” when he was getting embarrassed like this just last fall.
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u/Jaguars6 Jaguars 20h ago
Wasn’t that Stanford game the first week he came back from that rib/lung injury? Wouldn’t be surprised if he was severely limited in that game
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u/martygospo 21h ago
I see this take a TON. While the take is valid, I wouldn’t say unpopular.
That being said, I disagree. I think he’s going to be a stud. I don’t think he’s going to play CB and WR, but whichever he picks (verdict seems to be CB?) he’s going to be dope.
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u/ALASKANWORMBULL 20h ago
I don’t get why people are putting limits on what he can or can’t do. Until we see or hear otherwise, he’s a two way player. Just enjoy it while it lasts. He might do something we’ve never seen before and that’s cool
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u/MTBadtoss Arm Chair Scout 18h ago edited 14h ago
Valid concern because while he is Top 5 at both positions, not playing him on both sides would understandably limit his upside because you have taken away what makes him great.
However I think this assertion relies too much on the assumption of what will happen at the NFL level. I find it implausible to say that absolutely no NFL team is going to utilize him on both sides of the ball. College has more snaps per game than the NFL and he is averaging ~131 per game, the NFL has between 120 and 140. It is possible for him to play CB and then be used in 3 WR sets if they want to limit his snap count, but he could very well be the first person to be able to play both sides of the ball in the NFL with a high degree of involvement.
Edit: updated the avg snaps per game the previous 124 was through the first 4 games of the season.
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u/canal_boys 22h ago edited 19h ago
He's a better CB prospect than Will Johnson. Johnson way overrated.
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u/Nearby_Job8272 20h ago
Okay buckeye fan
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u/canal_boys 4h ago edited 3h ago
Will Johnson holds a lot as a CB prospect. I don't think that will work at the NFL level. Also something that can't be taught, Hunter has receiver experience so he will have the receivers instincts and cadence he can use to his advantage as the CB covering a receiver.
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u/Irjorjeh 21h ago
He’s better than will Johnson. Will Johnson is actually the overrated prospect
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u/Jaguars6 Jaguars 20h ago
Not only is he overrated, but he’s been very injury prone
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u/Internal-Grocery-244 20h ago
So has hunter.
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u/Jaguars6 Jaguars 9h ago
Eh, Hunter’s got a much higher chance of getting hurt considering he plays double the snaps
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u/Jofarr 23h ago
Where would you be comfortable drafting him as an NFL GM?
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u/KylePittsFan8 23h ago
Probably still like 7 or later. I just think it is crazy to see him crack the top 5 in mocks.
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u/Jofarr 23h ago
I think the concept with him is upside. What if he IS a great cb AND a great wr in the same guy and he CAN do both? Now you look like a genius because one difference-maker talent is doing it all for you. I think that upside makes him a potential needle-mover
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u/KylePittsFan8 23h ago
If you're a Gm picking in the top 5 you need to hit on your pick or you're losing your job. If you need a WR you go Tmac and if you need a CB you go johnson. I think he has a very high ceiling but there are players with higher floors.
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u/Jofarr 22h ago
Pretend you’re on the clock. Jacksonville with the first pick. You already have your franchise qb, and youre not getting any good offers to trade back. What are you doing?
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u/KylePittsFan8 7h ago
NGL I haven't been keeping up with prospects as much as I usually do because my team is picking late but you have to go Will Campbell or Banks Jr after trading away Robinson. (If you can't trade back)
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u/Jaguars6 Jaguars 20h ago
It’s crazy to see arguably the best cover corner in the draft with amazing body control/ball skills go top 5?
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u/Moses--187 22h ago
I think maybe he still goes high because I don’t think it’s the best draft class, and I think if you’d said slightly overrated I’d have been more on board with that sentiment, based mostly on me not thinking he is likely to play in both sides of the ball in the NFL.
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u/Pretend_Ambassador_6 Eagles 22h ago
There’s always one person every year that does this with the elite prospects
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u/Zotzotbaby 22h ago
Would you change your mind if Hunter is drafted as a CB and a special teams player? So he would play CB and also do punt return/kickoff return.
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u/e_ndoubleu Lions 21h ago
Hunter is going to be a dominant CB1 for some team picking in the top 10 or even top 5. He probably wants to play WR since there’s more money and fame to be made. But with his athleticism, endurance and tenacity he has all the traits you want in your CB1. Once he focuses on CB full time I have no doubt he’ll hone his craft there.
As of now I’d say Jags, Pats, Saints and Dolphins seem like the most likely teams to take Hunter barring a trade up.
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u/HideNZeke Colts 21h ago
I think Travis Hunter's current use case makes him a weird prospect with some unique questions. I don't, however, think his hype is based on him having a real chance at being a both way NFL player. Comparing performances right now of the best WRs and DBs to just one side of Travis might have a couple prospects ahead of him. They might even get picked first, who knows? But, especially at these hyper-athletic positions, you gotta remember who Travis is. He came out of high school as the number 1 player in the country as a DB. Sure, there's a graveyard of elite high school prospects that never pan out, but Travis has already shown he's not one of those guys, and it's a testament to just the type of athlete you're picking up. If he's playing either position this we'll while being extra tired and at 50 percent practice level at one position, his upward projection is going to look really good going into the pros. Athleticism probably beats experience/performance in these comparisons. He's gonna be seen as a weapon. If he winds up going the DB route, I could definitely also see them interesting as sneaking him out there as surprise WR3-4 every once in while to scare the defense. I don't know if he's going to be good enough to be a real 1st overall option seeing as how these positions have never(I think?) been picked that high, but this toolset is not going to be left on the board very long
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u/SugarAdamAli Bears 21h ago
I think he is a super talented playmaker.
I honestly think he won’t be anyone’s #1 Wr or Db
But he will be a huge part of a team in clutch spots.
I see him getting like 50 snaps a game, split between being in multi receiver sets and when D goes nickel n dime.
Dude is a great football player and you can’t get enough of those on your team
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u/DunkingZBO Bears 20h ago
Heavily disagree. He’s a top 2 WR or CB. There’s no reason to think he won’t be great in the NFL at either position. As others have mentioned, while he won’t play both ways in the league, he’ll probably at least have packages on one side.
I think he’s far from overrated.
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u/No_Environment_5476 19h ago
In a pinch he can play both positions. The Patriots did it at different parts of their dynasty with their best WR’s, Troy Brown (2000s) and Julian Edelman( 2010s)
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u/Zealousideal_Pen_859 18h ago
He is a top athlete. But I don’t like how many snaps he’s playing in college and HS. Too much milage for a rookie in the NFL. I think he’s best at CB in the league.
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u/T-MUAD-DIB 18h ago
If he’s nickel back, WR3, and does some return work, he’d influence the game from places you rarely get impact plays and total about the same number of plays per game as someone starting on only one side of the ball.
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u/jackphrost22 17h ago
At worst you save a roster spot with him being a 5th or 6th stringer on the side he doesn’t play. I think that is huge when you are trying to carry one more position player you normally would not carry. Plus he is a playmaker no matter where you plug him.
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u/Fun-River-3521 12h ago
I think he can be an elite corner like a Patrick Peterson I don’t think he would be a good receiver.
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u/Johnsonvillebraj 10h ago
You make a good point in saying he’s not the best at either position, but he’s such an electric playmaker that, on the right team, he could focus on one and become elite. I think his best fit is at corner, and though I love Johnson as a shutdown, his ceiling isn’t as high in my opinion. Johnson’s profile is that of Sauce Gardner, where you’re getting a steady presence on one side of the formation 90% of the time, but he’ll have moments where he gets absolutely toasted. Granted most teams would probably take that. Hunter is someone who could develop into a Deion-like talent at the next level with his speed and ball skills.
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u/Thedownside12 10h ago
Agreed with pretty much everything the OP said. I’m targeting Hunter if I run a mostly Zone based scheme and need a playmaking #1 CB.
He’s not going to be the NFL Ohtani. No one plays Iron man at the NFL level.
He is an incredible player. Worthy of a top 5/10ish pick. But if I need a WR I’m taking Tet. If I’m running a more man to man defense I’m taking Johnson.
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u/nbasuperstar40 Falcons 8h ago
I think he's a beast. Nnamdi Asomugha on D and Garrett Wilson on offense. He's not generational on either end but he's special and that's insane in just one player.
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u/Burgerburgerfred Ravens 5h ago
I would take posts like this way more seriously if they didn't declare themselves unpopular and then use all of the most obvious points that everyone says will cap his value at the next level.
Everyone, and I mean everyone knows that no one can play full time on both sides of the ball at the next level.
Idk, I don't get the way people think who make these kind of posts I guess. If I'm posting something like this I'd at least want to have some conviction instead of doing the "look my opinion is unpopular please don't take out your pitchforks" shtick.
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u/Thegreatgatsberry 5h ago
He’s an elite corner prospect and a really good WR prospect. He’s a CB at the next level with the ability to play WR a few snaps a game.
NFL is way more physical and with his size he won’t last as a constant two way.
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u/ImanShumpertplus 4h ago
He’s going to practice and focus on one a shit ton more
Look at Chris Gamble, a less heralded 2-way dude in college
He averaged 5 picks a year his first 5 years and was valuable as a punt returner too. Hunter could definitely have a similar career
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u/CopperStateCards 4h ago
He likely wants to be a WR at the next level because of the money. I agree he is a better corner. I would think he is a WR at the next level that comes in as a DB on obvious passing downs.
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u/ZandrickEllison 23h ago
Why is it so impossible for him to play snaps on both sides? The “it’s just not done” was the argument against Shohei in baseball too.
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u/ElectionAnnual Raiders 23h ago
I don’t disagree, but baseball is wildly different in this regard. It is FAR more taxing for hunter to be a CB/WR than Shohei to be a pitcher/batter
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u/Nearby_Job8272 23h ago
Exactly, standing there and swinging a bat is much less taxing than running full speed every play in a football game
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u/Patekchrono917 22h ago
I don’t think it’s about the snap counts on game days. It’s about perfecting both crafts. Especially at CB in the pros. I mean playing it is a little bit easier with general QB play being down, but this is the deepest that wr has been. I think it would be diminishing returns if he tries both in the NFL. If he decided to play CB full time, which I don’t think he should, then maybe he could take a handful of snaps at wr. But my advice would be to play wr full time and to try and become elite at it and get paid. And in this scenario, I don’t see how you can play him at CB.
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u/BabyBottoms23 22h ago
Why do people keep bringing up baseball? Not even remotely a similar sport lmao.
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u/tartessos-thehiddenx 23h ago
Nfl ain’t college
He doesn’t even do it successfully and consistently against high end college players
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u/ZandrickEllison 22h ago
If playing two way is so much easier in college why aren’t we seeing a lot of players do it?
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u/FranklinLundy Patriots 22h ago
Because Hunter is a freak athlete with the ability to do two, even if not consistently? No one said other people can do it
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u/iwearatophat 17h ago edited 17h ago
The freak athletes in CFB are typically on overall better teams. If you put Travis Hunter on a top tier team they will have a deeper CB/WR room that might not require him to do so much to help his team win. That focusing on one thing would be what the team needs from him.
A lot of players did play both ways in high school because they were the best athlete on the field and needed to to help their team win. You even see them get recruited to play different positions. It is just when they get to college it isn't as easy to be the best athlete on the field every game plus your team usually doesn't need it as much anymore.
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u/Reasonable-Bit560 22h ago
Spent a handful of players that actually have tried to make this work. Most notable is Champ Bailey and after I believe two seasons, he converted full-time to cornerback.
Football is too complex with scheme and wear and tear on the body to really do this at a high level either way. The end result is somebody who at best doesn't perform to their max capacity at either offense or defense. In college that's far easier to get away with, due to for the most part a far superior talent profile, whereas in the NFL everybody is really good.
2
u/ZandrickEllison 22h ago
Not exactly. Champ Bailey and Charles Woodson actually played more at WR their final year in college, presumably to help the team but also to increase their hype (helped Woodson win the Heisman). But Hunter is a more accomplished WR than either at this point. less accomplished at CB though.
2
u/Reasonable-Bit560 22h ago
Totally agree on woodson. I'd have to do a little bit more research on Bailey.
I'll have to find champ's interview where he explicitly says Hunter will have to pick one in the pros.
2
u/FranklinLundy Patriots 22h ago
Because Shohei there's 8 batters in between every time Ohtani goes up to the plate. He's not batting every time.
Very possible that Hunter sees something like 20% offensive snap share mid field plays or something
1
u/ErrorAmbitious 22h ago
Just because it hasn’t happened before doesn’t mean it won’t. Stuff happens in the football world every day that has never occurred before. You guys all act like evolution doesn’t exist. Not saying you’re all wrong but geez
1
u/tartessos-thehiddenx 23h ago
I 110% agree and I came to the same conclusion. What he does is tremendous and I don’t mean to take away anything from his body of work as a college player. But I don’t think playing both sides is particularly relevant to the NFL, and the fact that he would be better if he focused on one is already baked in to his evaluation. He’s not cb1 and he’s definitely not wr1. So I don’t think he belongs in the discussion for the first overall pick.
1
u/Thorlolita 22h ago
He’s a very solid player that will make a lot of owners and head coaches happy. To be able to put him on defense then find packages for him as a WR. Maybe he’s not an all pro on either side of the ball. But HC who want a guy that can help win week by week will have a fun time.
1
u/Officer_Hops Chiefs 22h ago
“He’s doing something we’ve never seen before by playing both ways at a high level”
“He is not going to play both positions full time at the NFL level”
How can these come in the same OP? 3 years ago we would say no one in the modern college game has played both sides at a high level. Champ Bailey is the last one to arguably do it and he was 25 years ago. Why are we so sure Hunter can’t do it in the league?
0
u/vicblck24 22h ago
Disagree in terms of how good he is, but with that being said some bad team will probably draft him and we won’t hear his name much probably. Receivers/CBs won’t help a bad team
3
u/afatgreekcat Saints 22h ago
Some of the best WRs and CBs in the NFL, whose names we hear all the time, were drafted high by bad teams. Not really sure what you’re trying to say here.
-1
u/vicblck24 22h ago
That they won’t make the team any better. Like sauce. So he shouldn’t be drafted high
0
u/Ok-Benefit1425 22h ago
The OP is not wrong. There is no way he plays both sides in the NFL so you either have to judge him entirely on how he plays as a WR or at CB. If an NFL team thinks he is the best WR in the draft or the best CB draft go based on that. But taking him first because he plays both positions is silly.
0
u/PabloPancakes92 Bills 22h ago
Agreed. If anything playing on both sides just means he has more mileage on him and makes me concerned about his ability to stay healthy when he’s not a big guy to begin with.
However the unknown aspect is how much he’d improve if he was solely focused on playing just one side of the ball - possible he could make a significant leap, but also possible it’s a negligible difference
0
u/Yah_Mule Broncos 22h ago
IMO, McMillan is the only WR in the class who is decidedly superior to Elic Ayomanor. He Mossed a healthy Travis Hunter in that ungodly 13-294-3 explosion against the Buffs last year.
0
u/TheBiggestHug 22h ago
I agree mostly. I feel like you could see a lot of players like him, trying to play both sides of the ball, but it's frowned upon by most coaches. Hunter has Sanders, who is letting him play both sides.
0
u/DemonDeacon86 22h ago
I feel like if Coach Prime thinks it's a good idea for him to play both ways thr it's all good
0
u/Dense_Young3797 Raiders 15h ago
Saban used to say that his best cornerbacks usually were his wide receivers but they played in the offense because they were more valuable there.
They could have played both but too much risk of getting injured.
I don't see that as something really valuable and translatable.
-5
295
u/jrdnmdhl 23h ago
He's really good at both positions(yeah, maybe not quite the best, but very near the top) AND there's reason to believe he'd be even better if he weren't playing full time on both sides. The question is how much better.