One of the most intriguing storylines heading into next week’s NFL draft has been reigning Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter and his role in the NFL. The former Colorado Buffaloes star made his name at the collegiate level not only as arguably the best wide receiver in the nation, but also as one of the best cornerbacks in the country.
However, not everyone is sold that Hunter’s body can endure the physicality of playing both ways for a full season at the professional level.
Now, one of the most well-respected coaches in the NFL is saying that he doesn’t think Hunter, or anyone for that matter, has enough time to be able to succeed on both sides of the field at the NFL level.
“It’s gonna be interesting to see how they do it, wherever he goes,” Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh said, according to Pro Football Talk.
“But to say that you’re gonna be completely immersed in everything that there is to know on offense and everything there is to know on defense. I don’t know if there’s enough hours in the day for a player to be able to do that, and to have every detail locked down.”
What’s interesting about Harbaugh’s take is that Hunter has said that if he can’t play both ways of the ball in the NFL, he’s likely to walk away from the game and retire.
“It’s never playing football again,” Hunter said of his response to not playing both ways, according to NFL insider Ari Meirov. “Because I’ve been doing it my whole life, and I love being on the football field. I feel like I could dominate on each side of the ball, so I really enjoy doing it.”
It’ll be interesting to see where Hunter is selected in the draft and how his new team plans on deploying him.
About Qwame Skinner
Qwame Skinner has loved both writing and sports his entire life. In addition to his sports coverage at Comeback Media, Qwame writes novels, and his debut; The First Casualty, an adult fantasy, is out now.