The two-way experiment may be over for Travis Hunter, but Champ Bailey believes that will help the rising Jacksonville Jaguars star flourish. Hunter played all 76 of Jacksonville's defensive snaps and took zero offensive reps during Sunday's 22-17 win over the Cincinnati Bengals. The 23-year-old broke up two passes and had the third-highest Pro Football Focus grade (86.9) among all cornerbacks in Week 4.
Having played wide receiver in college, Bailey can relate to Hunter's plight. Focusing on cornerback worked well for the Hall of Famer, who compiled 52 interceptions and 12 Pro Bowl appearances in 15 seasons. After Hunter's Week 4 performance, Bailey told FanDuel TV's Kay Adams he'd like to see the Heisman Trophy winner devote all his energy to defense.
"What I always said is, I want him to be great at something," Bailey said. "And I thought playing both ways would sort of make it difficult to be great at one of these things. Now he's playing full-time on defense, and you can see him getting comfortable with playing outside ...
The dude is a playmaker, and I thought he would have his most success at corner." Bailey believes Hunter could advocate for receiving reps later in his career after establishing himself as a prolific cornerback. While Bailey believes Hunter could succeed at either craft, he sees a higher ceiling on defense because playing receiver involves more variables outside his control. "He needs to butter his bread at corner," Bailey said.
"I believe that because I think he's unique here and he can separate himself there ... I think he can be great at either. But if he focuses on one?
Oh my god, sky's the limit for this kid." Even if Hunter endures some growing pains, Bailey doesn't see the second-year pro needing much time to become one of the league's premier cornerbacks. "I think his curve is very short. I don't feel like it's gonna take him long to get there," Bailey said.
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