We all know Colorado's Travis Hunter is extraordinarily talented, but no one is quite sure what his best position will be as a professional after he's selected in the 2025 NFL Draft.
I watched Hunter closely in 2023 and can't say I have any idea whether he'd be better off at wide receiver or cornerback at the next level. Instead of making a concrete statement either way right now, which would be ridiculous, I'm going to let Hunter's 2024 film point me in the right direction.
This is the second update to this piece. I wrote a detailed breakdown of what I saw in Colorado's opening-season win against North Dakota State after that game.
When it feels necessary, I'll check back with pertinent observational updates giving a peek behind the scouting curtain, outlining what I look for and what I've seen from Hunter as a cornerback and receiver throughout the year before making a final decision on his best path to NFL stardom. Hope you follow along!
Now let's get to my thoughts after Hunter's tremendous start to his 2024 campaign at Colorado.
Cornerback
Now four games into the 2024 season, Hunter has had 14 throws made into his target area and allowed 11 receptions for a minuscule 75 yards with one interception and one pass breakup. That advanced stat line is borderline unfathomable.
Beyond that coverage stinginess, which includes a mere 37 yards after the catch surrendered, Hunter has been a force as a tackler. He's yet to miss one and has 10 stops -- which are tackles that constitute a "loss" for the offense based on down and distance. That figure is tied for most among all cornerbacks in the nation.
Check these two tackles for loss against Nebraska and Baylor, respectively. Both begin with demonstrations of Hunter's high-IQ play recognition and end with how he taps into his supreme athletic gifts as a tackler.
Of course teams want quality tacklers at all positions, but it feels like coaches understand their cornerbacks aren't necessarily going to be as adept at bringing ball-carriers to the turf as their linebacker or defensive line counterparts. What Hunter lacks in girth and size and pure tackling volume, he more than makes up for with a speedy, heat-seeking style as a tackler in space. And making those impact plays on screens is vital today given the propensity of those plays in the NFL.
Now let's get to Hunter's coverage chops. It's nearly impossible to find a rep on film in which he's clearly beaten due to the athletic gifts of the receiver or the scheme, unless Colorado's in zone, when the responsibility is blurred assigning "blame" for receptions allowed.
Hunter has mostly stuck like glue to wideouts, both underneath and down the field.
Those are textbook coverage snaps featuring disruptions at the catch point on two completely different routes, one from the slot, one from the boundary. While Hunter doesn't look particularly long nor overly tall, playing on the perimeter today is much less about pure size and length and more about tenacity at the catch point, and Hunter certainly brings that every chance he can get.
After an impressive 2023 in coverage, Hunter has taken his game to another level at the cornerback position, regardless of pre-snap alignment or matchup. The film has been borderline sensational, and the traits jump off the screen on defense each game.
Wide receiver
Hunter has the sixth-most receiving yards in the country -- 472 -- with 37 receptions, which is the fourth-most catches among all wideouts at the FBS level. And only three pass catchers have more than his five receiving touchdowns.
Hunter has clearly established himself as Colorado's No. 1 receiver and, despite added attention from opposing defenses, his production has been steady in the season's first month of action.
Draft evaluations aren't always about pure production. But Hunter hasn't simply been schemed wide open in this incendiary start. Watch the veteran-esque patience and nasty crossover on this release from press coverage in the tight red zone against Colorado State that provided Shedeur Sanders with a candidate for easiest touchdown of the season.
But the foundation of succeeding in the NFL at receiver isn't as much about destroying press-man coverage as it was not too long ago. There's a case to be made that yards-after-the-catch skill is now one of the top priorities at the position.
And Hunter has flashed plenty of YAC talent. He has forced seven missed tackles on his 37 catches to date. Here are some fine examples of how nifty Hunter is with the ball in his hands because of his flexibility and sheer explosiveness.
The most striking observation I made while watching the past three games of Hunter's brilliance was how next-level his spatial awareness is, and how it's married to his footwork and body control. He's shown examples of how rapidly he processes defenders in traffic and can navigate around them while maintain his speed.
It's like the play is happening a half-speed for his mind. There was even a catch against Baylor in which Hunter looks back at Sanders, sees him throwing the long ball, so he puts his head down to gain more speed, then tracks the ball and makes a challenging catch in traffic.
Those three snags are as savvy as I've seen from many NFL receivers. Seriously. On those shallow crosses, many professionals would run into one of the defenders. The diving grab probably was a route improvisation by Hunter, and it demonstrated how his spatial awareness -- and understanding of the entire route concept on the play -- can lead to him quickly locating open space and getting there in a flash.
Conclusion (after first month of the season)
This has become much harder than I originally expected. Hunter has been that good at cornerback and receiver. However, I still believe Hunter appears to be more dynamic and refined at receiver, and this magnificent spatial awareness provides him more advantages on offense.