Marcus Spears Calls out Jaguars for Letting Travis Hunter Play Both Offense and Defense Following Season-Ending Injury

Jacksonville Jaguars traded up two places to draft Colorado Buffaloes alum Travis Hunter as second overall in the 2024 NFL Draft

Marcus Spears Calls out Jaguars for Letting Travis Hunter Play Both Offense and Defense Following Season-Ending Injury

Travis Hunter, Marcus Spears (Images via PFSN/ESPN Press Room)

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In some ways, one would say that the little experiment the mighty Jacksonville Jaguars were on this season has failed. The Jaguars have been trying to play the season’s second-highest draft pick, Travis Hunter, in both offense and defense as a wideout and a cornerback, respectively.

Hunter, straight out of college and a Heisman-winning year, has played as a two-way star in college, and he expected to don the same jersey in the professional league as well. It had gone without much drama before his rookie year came to an early close when he sustained a season-ending injury. The player underwent surgery on his LCL after he injured the area during a non-contact practice ahead of their Week 9 game against the Las Vegas Raiders.

Following the surgery, the Jaguars updated the fans that Hunter may be off the field for the remainder of the season. With his rookie season winding up already, discussions outside the 100-yard field have identified a common factor to unite on: Hunter playing on both sides of the ball. As a two-way player, he has twice the number of chances to be injured, and people have called out the Jaguars for letting him do so.

Marcus Spears, a former NFL defensive end who played primarily for the Dallas Cowboys, pointed out that wear and tear will be significantly heavier for a player who plays both sides of the ball in a single game. He also added that he believed there would be a point where such a player would end up missing most of a season.

Joining in online on an episode of NFL Live, Spears had some major questions regarding the Jags’intentions.

“How much are you going to ask? Like we all know this. We’ve been doing this show long enough to know that if you’re playing both sides of the ball in the NFL, you’re going to miss significant time during the season at some point. At some point, it’s going to catch up with you to wear and tear,” Spears said.

Spears added that the Jacksonville Jaguars should really reflect on whether they have any long-term benefits from Hunter playing both sides of the ball.

Jaguars take a patient approach with Travis Hunter’s recovery and future role

There’s no rush in Florida to establish a return for Travis Hunter and his capabilities and strategies. After all, he is set to be sidelined for the entirety of six months, and that leaves him out of play even if the Jags make the playoffs. Ideally, he could return to action in the next preseason, maybe, and that’s a long, long time away.

Travis Hunter's rookie season is over
Travis Hunter’s rookie season is over (Image via Sleeper NFL/X)

According to Michael DiNocco of ESPN, the Jags HC Liam Coen addressed the questions from reporters in Wednesday’s press conference regarding Hunter. DiNocco reported that Coen mentioned that there’s no concrete plan for how they are going to use Hunter’s two-way skills in the future and it shall be devised once he’s back on the team fully healthy.

“I understand there’s a lot of questions about if he’ll remain a two-way player and all those kind of things. All of that is very premature and at the end of the day, like every player on this roster, he’ll be evaluated at the end of the season and we’ll be able to give him his three better, three best and the things that we need to continue to improve upon and the things we need to build on,” Coen said.

The head coach later explained that the team intended to review his performance over the past seven games and use the available data to determine the best path for Hunter. As a wideout, he has had 28 receptions for 298 yards and a single touchdown. On defense as a cornerback, Hunter has four solo tackles and a combined fifteen tackles.

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