Travis Hunter has made it abundantly clear that he wants to continue to be a two-way player when he begins his NFL career, and the former Colorado star would like his future team to know he is very, very serious about that.
In a recent interview with Garrett Podell of CBS Sports, Hunter spoke about how much he has emphasized to teams leading up to the draft that he expects to play both wide receiver and cornerback in the NFL. The Heisman Trophy winner even appeared to give teams an ultimatum.
Hunter said he would rather not play football than be told he has to stick to one position.
“It’s never playing football again,” Hunter told Podell. “Because I’ve been doing it my whole life, and I love being on the football field. I feel like I could dominate on each side of the ball, so I really enjoy doing it.”
That was likely a hyperbole from Hunter. There is no way he would retire if an NFL team told him he needed to focus on one side of the ball. If anything, that was another way for him to show teams that he truly believes he can do at the professional level what very few players have done before him.
Hunter acknowledged that the competition will be much steeper in the NFL than it was at Colorado. He said he has “a competitive spirit that I can do whatever I put my mind to,” however, so he is not concerned about taking on too much.
If Hunter were to play wide receiver and cornerback in the NFL, he would have to find a way to attend meetings with both position groups. Some would say there are not enough hours in a day for that, but the 21-year-old recently made a wild claim about the type of workload he is willing to take on.
Hunter is widely expected to be taken with one of the first four picks in the draft, which belong to the Tennessee Titans, Cleveland Browns, New York Giants and New England Patriots. Though, the Titans seem locked in on quarterback Cam Ward.
Patriots coach Mike Vrabel has indicated he would be willing to have Hunter play snaps on offense and defense, though he offered a disclaimer.
Even if he sees time on both sides of the ball, it is still likely that Hunter’s next team will want him to focus on honing his skills at one position. We doubt any NFL team is concerned about the risk of Hunter retiring.
