Travis Hunter And The Jaguars Pounce Panthers In Week 1 Win

Hunter finished the day with a decent output for his NFL debut. He had six catches for a total of 33 yards, with a big play coming in the second quarter to set up a field goal for Jacksonville to go up 20-3 at halftime. The first-round draft pick had his longest catch of the game go for 10 yards. Hunter ended up being the third-highest receiver for the Jaguars, with tight end Brenton Strange and wide receiver Dyami Brown leading with 59 and 52 yards, respectively.

Hunter’s Defensive Disappearance

The defensive side of the field was not the focus for Hunter’s professional football debut. He only gathered one tackle on the defensive side of the ball and had six snaps on defense. It looks like the Jaguars didn’t want to overwhelm their second overall draft pick by having him play almost all 66 snaps of the game. The rest of the defense made their presence known with a forced fumble, two interceptions, and holding Bryce Young to 154 passing yards.

As the season goes on, the Jaguars can hope to figure out a balance between offensive and defensive snaps to get the most production out of their first-round pick.

End Of My Travis Hunter And Jaguars Rant

The Jaguars’ smothering of the Panthers on Sunday afternoon was accomplished with some mishaps along the way. There was a weather delay that prolonged the second half, with it starting later than scheduled. The focus on the Heisman winner’s debut overshadowed the game itself before Hunter made a decent showing on he field. The rookie’s first game in teal ended with a 26-10 win over Carolina.

The stark difference between his offensive and defensive snap count tells signs of what Jacksonville would prefer Hunter to focus on. His presence as a receiver seems to be the focal point of his development, but time will tell how evenly distributed the snaps on offense and defense are handled.

The 1-0 Jaguars will face the 0-1 Bengals in week two of the NFL season.