Travis Hunter Dynasty Value: Future Fantasy Star or Draft Trap?

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We've witnessed some dynamic two-way players in college football.

Think throwback names like Charles Woodson and Champ Bailey.

Nobody, though, has matched Travis Hunter's accomplishments on offense and defense.

Let's run through Hunter's remarkable college journey -- and then project his dynasty potential as a starting WR in Jacksonville.

Travis Hunter Dynasty Values

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Travis Hunter Draft Profile

Travis Hunter Combine Results

Hunter Shocks College Football World

Hunter first committed to Florida State in 2020.

Then the No. 1 high school recruit made a shocking decision by flipping to Jackson State.

“Coach Prime [Hall of Fame DB and Jackson State HC Deion Sanders] changed my mind,” Hunter said. “He let me know how big of an impact I can have on the people, and that is one of the things I wanted -- to shine the light on our people [African Americans] and shine the light on HBCUs.”

Hunter played eight games as a true freshman, contributing at WR and CB. 

He missed four games with an undisclosed injury. Still, he flashed with 4 TDs on 18 catches, plus 2 INTs and 8 passes defensed.

Turns out, Hunter was just getting started ...

Following Coach Prime to the Power Five

Sanders took the HC job at Colorado in December 2022. His son and Jackson State QB, Shedeur, made the same move.

Hunter soon followed.

“I committed to Coach Prime at Jackson State when he was there, and I want to honor my commitment and stay with him,” Hunter said. “I’ve got to stay with my dawg.”

Hunter remained a two-way player. But how would he handle the jump in competition?

Hunter Shows Heisman Potential … When Healthy

Hunter’s first game at Colorado turned up 11 catches for 119 yards.

And that came against 17th-ranked TCU.

Adversity would hit in Game 3, though. Hunter sustained a lacerated kidney, forcing three absences.

Naturally, he returned for a blockbuster game – 13-140-2 – against Stanford. 

For the season, he averaged 80.1 yards per game and showed incredible stamina in his two-way role. Hunter led the nation with 1,102 total snaps played (631 on defense, 475 on offense, and 32 on special teams).

Next up: The type of encore you had to see to believe.

The Best Season in College Football History

2023 wasn’t even close to the peak for Hunter.

Across 13 games in 2024, he racked up 96 catches, 1,258 yards, and 15 TDs. Each mark ranked top 5 nationally.

He caught an excellent 79.3% of his targets. He commanded the ball, posting a 26.6% team target share. And he did so on a Colorado team might see two other WRs drafted this April.

Hunter added 36 tackles, 4 INTs, and 11 passes defensed. He retained a massive workload by playing 86.8% of the offensive snaps and 82.9% on defense.

It’s no surprise that he earned the Heisman Trophy, plus awards for Most Outstanding Player and Defensive Player of the Year.

Next, let’s take a look at his dazzling WR highlights. From there, I'll share which position(s) he's mostly likely to play in the NFL ...

Travis Hunter Highlights

Games watched: North Dakota State (2024), Kansas State (2024), Nebraska (2024), Arizona (2023), Stanford (2023)

Mike Evans-Like Red Zone Ability Signals TD Upside

Hunter measured 6’0 and 188 pounds at the Combine. 

He plays much bigger on tape, though – especially in the red zone.

Hunter leaves college with a massive 14.1% TD rate. He has also caught an elite 63.3% of his contested targets.

Catch Him If You Can (You Can't)

Hunter’s just as proficient in catch-and-run opportunities. On average, he has forced one missed tackle every 3.6 catches. That’s among the best marks in this class – and even more impressive when you mix in a career average target depth of 11.2.

(The leaders in forcing missed tackles after receptions tend to work shorter than that.)

This next clip is another nod to Hunter’s YAC ability. 

We also see his excellent play speed. 

According to Reel Analytics, Hunter was clocked at 21.4 mph in September. That would have ranked among the fastest times in the NFL in 2024, per Next Gen Stats.

So Fast He Doesn’t Need to Prove It

Hunter didn’t test at the Combine, but his Colorado tape shows he probably could have posted a sub 4.4-second 40 time.

That speed certainly served him well on deep balls. Per Pro Football Focus, Hunter caught 14 of 27 deep targets (0 drops) in 2024. Those turned into 417 yards and 6 TDs.

A Nearly Perfect WR Prospect?

Frankly, it’s hard to find a true weakness in Hunter’s profile.

You can poke at his size, but it’s far from a concern.

You can see some lost reps vs. press, but NFL OCs can work around that.

Ultimately, there’s no real cause for concern with Hunter’s WR play.

The concern, of course, is how much time his NFL team will allow him to spend on offense. For now, imagine him catching passes from Drake Maye ...

Travis Hunter Team Fit: Jacksonville Jaguars

The Jags traded up to select Hunter with the second overall pick.

Their plan for him? Well, here's HC Liam Coen.

“We know that he's going to be able to do both [play WR and DB]. We feel that in our bones,” Coen said via the Florida Times-Union. “We're going to set that up that way from a schedule, from an operations standpoint, the way that we're going to operate for him, to set him up to have the most success that he can to, in fact, then help the Jacksonville Jaguars become the best version of ourselves.”

Nobody knows how the snap breakdown will look. The Jags are in experimental, uncharted waters. But given the info we have right now, we're projecting Hunter to play something close to a full-time role at WR in year one.

He'll slide into the WR2 alongside Brian Thomas Jr., who enjoyed a massive rookie season (87-1,282-10). If Trevor Lawrence can rebound under Coen, Hunter will have the infrastructure in place for fantasy production.

Dynasty Value Conclusion: A Legit Talent With an Unsettled Role

We have no doubt Hunter will produce in the NFL.

His tape simply shows a rare blend of strong hands, quick-twitch movement skills, and contested-catch ability. His overall production -- and early breakout -- further signal a future fantasy WR1.

But until we see him tackle both an offensive and defensive role. he'll carry some risk in fantasy. That's part of why he sits fourth in our dynasty rookie rankings.

Brian Thomas' presence is another reason to keep high-end WR1 fantasy expectations in check. His dynamic rookie year -- at just 22 -- shows he's equipped for a high-volume role going forward.

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