The Jacksonville Jaguars took Travis Hunter with the second pick in the 2025 NFL draft and from all appearances this summer, the team fully plans to at least try having Hunter play both offense and defense as a rookie. It will be an experiment worth watching; no player in modern NFL history has successfully played both sides of the ball on a consistent basis. Hunter did so well enough in college to win the Heisman Trophy, but the professional realm is a different story entirely—and the young athlete already has a doubter among the NFL ranks in Los Angeles Rams star Davante Adams.
Appearing on the Pivot Podcast, Adams explained why he doesn't think Hunter can play both sides consistently at an NFL level. He noted that he wants to see Hunter try, but believes the physical toll will prove too much.
"I don't even think it's possible to do," Adams said during his podcast appearance. "Not at a high level. It's hard enough to go cover a punt and then be on one side of it... That's just a lot of mileage, man. I'm not even concerned so much if he can do it over the course of a game or a season, it's more like, how long is his career gonna be if he's playing that many snaps. All you're doing is doubling your risk for injury, one, and I don't wish any of that on him.
"I hope that he can play an injury-free season and go ball out. But it's just the reality, the more you're on the field. It's already a 100 percent injury guarantee. Once you get out there playing both sides, now you have to tackle, you got to tackle Derrick Henry? With that frame?... That's a lot of football to play."
It's interesting to hear the perspective of a star player in the NFL who has been around for a while. Adams knows how hard it is to play wideout at a high level, and the 10-year vet probably has a good idea of the toll tackling takes on defenders. If he has doubts, he probably isn't alone.
To Adams's point, the physical punishment of it all is arguably a bigger challenge than the skill required to master two positions in the NFL. Talent isn't the question with Hunter. It's whether he can hold up running a go route 40 yards down the field for Trevor Lawrence before going to tackle a player like Henry.
It doesn't seem possible from where we're standing. But it would appear Hunter is going to give it a try, and it will be one of the big storylines from the 2025 season.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Davante Adams Explains Why He Doesn't Think Travis Hunter Can Play Both Ways in NFL.
