JACKSONVILLE — Travis Hunter returned to the practice field at the Miller Electric Center this week fully healthy and noticeably bigger, running 22.6 miles per hour after adding 10 pounds of muscle during a nine-month rehabilitation from the knee injury that ended his rookie season.
The No. 2 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft and 2024 Heisman Trophy winner missed the final 10 games of the Jaguars’ AFC South Championship season. He has participated fully in all three days of training camp, working with both the offense and defense — a departure from early last camp, when he focused on one side of the ball before expanding his role.
“I put nine months in, so it doesn’t feel like I’m coming off an injury,” Hunter said Friday. “I’ve been gone for nine months, not able to be out here with my teammates for nine months, so finally being able to hit the grass, knock the rust off and just continue to click with the quarterbacks and click with the defense.”
Head Coach Liam Coen said he has been encouraged by what he has seen. “I’m pleased with the way he has attacked everything that we’re trying to do,” Coen said.
Hunter caught 28 passes for 298 yards and one touchdown last season on offense while also playing extensively at cornerback before the injury. He said the added weight initially worried him but that months of work in the weight room changed his mind. “I was scared at first. I’m like, ‘I’ve never played at this weight. I’m going to feel heavy, not going to be able to do what I do,’” Hunter said. “Training and being able to put those months in, not just on the grass, but in the weight room too, just putting in extra work, it made me feel lighter on my feet when I finally touched the grass.”
Hunter said he feels “a lot faster” entering his second season and has set a new speed target. “I’m trying to hit 23 now,” he said. “That’s the next goal. I’m a defensive back and a receiver, so I’ve got to be able to put them up and put them down.”
He credited the coaching staff with giving him room to play instinctively on both sides of the ball. “I definitely do feel free. They let me go out there and just do my thing, let me be me,” Hunter said. “They give me the coaching points and let me know if my technique’s falling off or if I need to up my technique.”
Hunter was not the only defensive back who stood out Friday. Third-year cornerback Jarrian Jones registered two interceptions and a pass breakup during the two-hour, unpadded session. Jones, who has started seven of 34 games played across two NFL seasons, intercepted three passes with eight passes defensed last season. “He’s physical. When he plays with anticipation and just plays free, and he’s not overthinking it, and we’re not maybe putting him in positions to overthink, he’s able to just go play,” Coen said. “He likes to be up front and challenge people in their faces.”
The Jaguars continue training camp practices at the Miller Electric Center through the preseason, with their first exhibition game on the horizon.