JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The Jacksonville Jaguars’ most electrifying playmaker had very little to do with their historic turnaround in 2025.So, in some ways, two-way star Travis Hunter’s sophomore season should carry even more hype — not less — than his disproportionately anticipated rookie season, which was cut short in a Week 9 practice when he tore the LCL in his right knee. The Jaguars traded an extra first-round pick to move up to No. 2 in the 2025 NFL Draft to select Hunter, but they didn’t get much bang for their buck. Hunter finished his rookie campaign with only 28 catches, 298 yards and one touchdown on offense, with three pass breakups and 15 total tackles on defense. He played an average of 69 snaps over seven games, 46 on offense and 23 on defense.It’s understandable why Hunter is no longer the one-man thrill ride everyone wants to talk about as he was a summer ago; the Jaguars and their opponents alike were fascinated by his combination of talent and utilization. However extreme, he was billed as football’s answer to Shohei Ohtani, yet Hunter closed the season as an afterthought.This year, the Jaguars are not eager to put too much pressure on Hunter and are happy to let him fly under the radar a little bit.“We’re really looking forward to seeing him just go play ball and let him do his thing,” Jaguars coach Liam Coen told The Athletic recently.Coen, the first rookie coach in history to lead a team from four wins to 13, has even adjusted Hunter’s plan. The Jaguars expect Hunter to play more cornerback than receiver this season, which they say is more of a nod to their depth chart than his skill set or development.To their point, the Jaguars need significantly more from their cornerbacks this season. Last year, they flipped Tyson Campbell for Greg Newsome in an attempt to find a better scheme fit, but Newsome struggled in the playoff loss to the Buffalo Bills before departing in free agency. This season, the Jags hope Hunter and Montaric “Buster” Brown can better solidify the position.The positional deployment might benefit Hunter, too. Before being drafted, teams generally believed Hunter was better suited to be a full-time corner and part-time wideout in the NFL, though the Jags saw it the other way. They wanted him to gain as much experience as possible in Coen’s offense while mixing in at corner.Now, Hunter is preparing to serve as the team’s No. 1 cornerback. Defensive coordinator Anthony Campanile’s zone-based system will likely keep Hunter to a side of the field rather than a receiver-based assignment, at least for a majority of the time.Hunter, who has added 10-12 pounds of muscle this offseason, will also greatly benefit from facing the line of scrimmage and attacking the ball with anticipation, which is one of his greatest strengths. That also aligns with Campanile’s schematic vision, as he took over a unit that ranked last with nine turnovers in 2024 and led them to 31 takeaways in 2025, second most in the league.Another boost: Coen ordered the construction of a virtual meeting room over the offseason, knocking down a wall and installing top-of-the-line software to aid the team’s mental reps. According to those around the Jaguars, Hunter has utilized the room more than anyone, and it’s not particularly close. He can walk into the room, listen to the defensive play call, move to his spot within the formation, watch the offense virtually line up and then handle the necessary checks and communication assignments from there.“He’s done so much work in the virtual meeting rooms, walkthroughs, (traditional) meeting room,” Coen said. “That’s been a huge part of his growth and maturation throughout this training camp. He’s put in a lot of time and built his body back up in a physical way, especially his upper half. Just getting him playing confident, to really go out and play. He hasn’t played football in a long time, so we’re really in that ramp-up process.”To be fair, there were concerns about Hunter’s durability before he entered the league, strictly out of skepticism that a two-way player could hold up with a significant jump in physicality from the University of Colorado to the NFL. It’d be unfair to connect those concerns with the knee injury, but it will be important for Hunter to get through a full season to alleviate any lingering doubts. The mental reset and added mass should conceivably help.Offensively, the Jaguars are preparing to pick Hunter’s spots. Aside from plays specifically designed around him, look for Hunter to draw much of his early work in crucial situations, including money downs and in the red zone. But they’re also getting Hunter ready to take on an expanded role in case Jakobi Meyers, Parker Washington or Brian Thomas Jr. go down with injuries.There will also be games when the matchup calls for a more offensive tilt, so of course, the Jaguars have a generalized plan for Hunter’s usage. But they aren’t trying to pigeonhole him.The Jaguars’ ultimate goal is the same with Hunter; the path to it just might look a bit different this year. And for an organization that is trying to secure back-to-back playoff appearances for the first time since the 1990s, Hunter’s newish look should be a boon in Jacksonville.“We expect him,” Coen said, “to really have a huge impact for our team.”