Could Travis Hunter Win Both NFL Offensive and Defensive Rookie of the Year Awards?
The modern NFL has never seen a prospect like Heisman winner Travis Hunter, whom Jacksonville Jaguars general manager James Gladstone values so much that he traded a future first-round pick to move up three spots in the NFL draft to select the two-way star.
But could Travis Hunter win both NFL Offensive and Defensive Rookie of the Year? The former Colorado wide receiver and cornerback has a chance to be the first true two-way player in decades - if Gladstone and Jaguars head coach Liam Coen truly give him the opportunity.
Hunter is among the top three favorites by both the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year odds and the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year odds, so should you bet him to win both?
🐆 Travis Hunter Rookie of the Year odds
🏈 Travis Hunter's NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year odds: +800 via Caesars
🏈 Travis Hunter's NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year odds: +1000 via FanDuel
🏈 Travis Hunter odds to win either NFL OROY or DROY: +320 via FanDuel
🏈 Travis Hunter's odds to win both NFL Offensive and Defensive Rookie of the Year: +5000 via FanDuel
🔥 Travis Hunter's case for NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year
- Travis Hunter projected offensive stats: 84 receptions, 1,190 receiving yards, nine receiving TDs
With Las Vegas Raiders running back Ashton Jeanty and Tennessee Titans top pick Cam Ward already having odds shorter than +500 at our best sports betting sites, Hunter is hands down the best value when it comes to betting into the NFL OROY market.
The Jaguars are an ideal landing spot for Hunter with a franchise QB in Trevor Lawrence and a coach in Coen who does not shy away from throwing the ball.
When I broke down the 2025 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year odds, Hunter jumped out to me as the best bet on the board for several reasons. First of all, Lawrence is one of the most talented passers in the NFL. Though he was banged up last season, he finished tied for third in big-time throws in 2023 (35) and eighth in 2022 (28), per PFF.
That speaks to his willingness to go vertical down the field, make tight window throws, and put it up to let his receivers win 50/50 balls. That's the exact type of quarterback Hunter needs to showcase his ridiculous ball-tracking ability, absurd body control in contested catch situations, and talent for creating after the catch.
Hunter was one of just two pass catchers in the Power 4 with a contested catch rate of better than 60% and 20-plus forced missed tackles after the catch.
🤝 Does Brian Thomas Jr. help or hurt Hunter?
The other huge plus for this landing spot is the fact that he won't immediately see teams shifting coverage towards him because the Jaguars already have a young star receiver in Brian Thomas Jr.
Last year's first-round pick finished fourth in NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year voting and was seventh in the league in yards per route run (2.45).
That obviously could create concerns about Hunter's target share, but with Coen calling plays, that's not something I'm overly worried about. Last season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Coen helped Baker Mayfield finish third in the NFL in passing yards (4,500) and second in passing touchdowns (41).
This Jaguars offense is somewhat similarly constructed, too, with a former No. 1 pick at QB who hasn't quite lived up to the hype and two freakish receivers similar to Mike Evans and Chris Godwin. Another reason not to doubt Hunter's workload is that the next-best receiver options on Jacksonville are Dyami Brown and the enigmatic Gabe Davis.
Hunter is an elite receiver prospect, especially considering how dominant he was at Colorado while also routinely playing 60-plus snaps per game on the defensive side of the ball and mirroring the opponent's best receiver.
Despite him doing that at an All-American level, he was still an unstoppable force at receiver, averaging 2.51 yards per route run with his QBs putting up a 142.7 NFL passer rating when targeting him.
The presence of Thomas won't stop his ability from shining through on the offensive end. So I'm expecting both Thomas and Hunter to go for 1,000-plus yards.
🔄 Does playing defense help Hunter's OROY case?
The underappreciated aspect of Hunter's case in a loaded NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year race against Jeanty, Ward, and other talented playmakers is that the voters could let the No. 2 pick's versatility sway their decision.
It's a whole lot more impressive to put up over 1,000 yards from scrimmage and eight or so touchdowns while also moonlighting at cornerback than it is to have 1,200 yards and 12 touchdowns as a one-way player. I think the voters will take that into account when it comes to Hunter's OROY resume, especially if he has a better case to win OROY than DROY.
Hunter could end up the most valuable rookie in the NFL if he emerges as a Pro Bowl talent at receiver and a competent cornerback, and I think the voters will reward him for that by giving him an edge in the OROY race - even if he has slightly less production.
Between his landing spot and the fact that he's going to get a bump for helping on both sides of the ball, there's no better NFL OROY candidate to back than Hunter with a $10 winning bet on him paying an $80 profit.
📊 Travis Hunter's best NFL OROY odds: +800 via Caesars | Implied probability: 11.11%
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🛡️ Travis Hunter's case for NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year
- Travis Hunter projected defensive stats: 18 tackles, five passes defended, one interception
For as unlikely as it seems that the Jaguars will truly play Hunter both ways, every time Gladstone talks about his first-ever pick as Jacksonville's general manager, it seems like he thinks he's selected the biggest unicorn in league history.
Given Gladstone's analytics background, I'm not so sure the Jaguars would make that trade up purely for a wide receiver.
By all accounts, the Jaguars plan to use him on both sides of the ball; it's just a question of how much he'll be playing. Pre-draft reports indicated that most NFL teams viewed him as a wide receiver who could play cornerback, and not the other way around.
Funny enough, when he was the No. 1 recruit in the country, Hunter was projected as a college cornerback and not a receiver - that's where Florida State planned to play him before he flipped his commitment.
The biggest reason why Hunter opted to play for Deion Sanders, first at Jacksonville State and then at Colorado, was that he'd allow him to go both ways when the vast majority of Power 4 teams wanted him at cornerback.
So, for as special of a wide receiver as he is, Hunter's more natural position is on the defensive side, and he was rated as both the No. 1 wide receiver and No. 1 cornerback in the NFL draft by most analysts.
🐐 Can Hunter really be a Pro Bowl cornerback?
Though the majority of his highlight plays come on the offensive side of the ball, there's an argument that he's even more valuable as a top cornerback capable of taking away No. 1 receiver options. Hunter allowed just a 39.9 NFL QB rating when targeted last season for the Buffaloes.
Many of the same traits that make him an unstoppable force as a receiver show up with his ability in coverage. He has the light feet to mirror receivers, the fluidity to flip his hips and react, the ball skills to find the ball and make plays in phase, and the length to disrupt the catch point on 50/50 balls.
But most of all, his instincts and IQ in coverage make him a dangerous player to target on any given down.
Opponents threw at Hunter 41 times last season, and he gave up 23 receptions for 222 yards and just one touchdown while picking off four passes. He has the skill set to be an instant impact defender for the Jaguars, and I highlighted in my NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year odds breakdown why cornerback is a position to target when it comes to DROY.
🤔 Will Hunter play enough defense to win DROY?
Reports indicate that Hunter sat in on defensive meetings and practiced with the defense during the week at Colorado, but when it came to offense, he often received signals from Shedeur Sanders on which routes to run and had specific offensive packages catered for him.
This helped mitigate the issues that come with needing to know both playbooks, sitting in on meetings with both sides of the ball/position groups, and practicing with both the offense and defense.
That's not something that's going to work all that well in the NFL. If Hunter is expected to focus on offense first, moonlighting at cornerback and playing substantial snaps sounds borderline impossible for a player who won't be in every meeting and practicing with the defense.
"His intent is on playing both sides of the ball, as is ours," Gladstone said on ESPN. "When it comes to his onboarding process, we’ll give him a heavy dose of offense and sprinkle in the defensive side of the ball, knowing that by the time we get to the regular season, those should be balanced out. But that’s the initial onboarding plan as it stands today. This is uncharted territory."
With a player like Abdul Carter sitting atop the NFL DROY odds, Hunter just doesn't look like a great bet given the circumstances. That's not to say he won't be a star on both sides down the line, but as a rookie, it seems far less likely that he plays even 50% of the Jaguars' defensive snaps.
How comfortable could Jaguars defensive coordinator Anthony Campanile be with a starting corner who isn't in every meeting or consistently practicing with the first-team defense?
📊 Travis Hunter's best NFL DROY odds: +1000 via FanDuel | Implied probability: 9.09%
🦄 Can Travis Hunter win both NFL Offensive and Defensive Rookie of the Year?
- Travis Hunter projected offensive snaps: 800-900 (47 to 53 per game)
- Travis Hunter projected defensive snaps: 150-200 (eight to 12 per game)
It's not a question of whether Hunter has the talent to win NFL Offensive and Defensive Rookie of the Year - he clearly does based on his tape at Colorado. It's a question of whether he'll see enough time on both sides of the ball to actually win it.
Everything Gladstone has said points to the Jaguars' long-term plan being to play Hunter both ways, but how soon is he playing legitimate starting snaps on both sides?
If Hunter were solely playing defense, I would still firmly be behind Carter in the DROY race. It's hard not to back the New York Giants' rookie after he finished second in the country in pressures (66) and fifth in pass-rush win rate (22.6%) last season at Penn State. A pass rusher has won the award in five of the last six seasons.
So now taking into account that Hunter will be eased into playing on the defensive side of the ball - which could mean not playing cornerback at all early in his rookie season - it's just not a good bet to back him to win both.
The +5000 odds at our best sports betting apps might jump out at first glance as a potential payday, but a $10 winning bet paying a $500 profit for something that's never happened in NFL history doesn't seem like a good investment.
Even if the Jaguars were committing to truly playing Hunter as a starter with 40-plus snaps on both sides of the ball every game, these odds would still be too short. Carter is a slam-dunk dunk clear favorite for NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year right now because he's one of the most talented pass rushers in recent draft history.
🧠 The smart play? Bet Hunter to win OROY
Instead of betting on him to win both, use the fact that Hunter will be starting at receiver and occasionally playing cornerback as the perfect reason to back him to win NFL OROY at relatively longer odds than the favorites.
We've seen how electric he his making plays downfield and with the ball in his hands, and he's teaming up with a QB in Lawrence and a play-caller in Coen who will ensure he gets his touches. Every opportunity will be there for Hunter on offense, and we just can't say the same about him on defense without knowing the Jaguars' plan.
I wouldn't even entertain his odds to win either NFL OROY or DROY at +320 because I think there's so little chance he wins Defensive Rookie of the Year, so that market just takes away from a potential profit when he's a legitimate Offensive Rookie of the Year contender.
Hunter's the smartest NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year bet you can make with the current odds while simultaneously being the worst NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year bet among the biggest favorites. His odds to win both should be no shorter than +10000 before even considering it.
📊 Travis Hunter's odds to win both NFL OROY and DROY: +5000 via FanDuel | Implied probability: 1.96%
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