It has been a back-and-forth conversation between the Hall of Famer Shannon Sharpe and Leanna Lenee, Travis Hunter’s wife. The issue in question is the Jacksonville Jaguars WR’s ability to play on both sides of the ball, and how the team is actually using him.
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Lenee called Sharpe out after Hunter became one of the few players in NFL history to record a touchdown and an interception in the same game. She said, “Anyways…@shannonsharpe84 When you speak about my husband make sure you put ‘TWO WAY’ player in front.”
Sharpe offered his rebuttal in the latest episode of Nightcap.
“So now we’ve been abundantly clear that the likelihood of him playing every snap, every down on both sides of the ball is not going to happen, right?” Sharpe clarified his earlier comments on the Nightcap podcast. “Play him on the defensive side of football and put him in packages. That’s what they did today…Hey, I understand that he’s your husband, and you’re supposed to ride for him…All I’ve ever said is that he’s not playing every snap of every down on both sides of the ball.”
Travis Hunter is now the fourth player in the history of the NFL to post a receiving touchdown and an interception in the same game. The feat was last achieved by none other than the “Wolverine” himself, Hall of Famer Brian Dawkins, in 2002.
So far this season, there is a group of fans who have called out Travis Hunter‘s negligible use in the Jacksonville offense. He has mostly played as a cornerback this year; his offensive snap counts entering the Texans game were in single digits only. When head coach Liam Coen was asked about the team’s plans for Hunter, he’d just said the WR/CB simply wanted to contribute in a way that brings home wins.
But Travis Hunter made his name with his heroics on both sides of the ball when he was in college. In his final season with the Colorado Buffaloes, per the team’s records, he played in 86.8% of offensive snaps, 82.9% of defensive snaps, and even 21 special teams snaps. Hunter duly earned the Heisman Trophy that season.
In his rookie season with the Jags, Hunter actually saw a lot more time on offense than he does now. He played 324 offensive snaps and only 162 defensive snaps, with the offensive snaps making up 67% of the playing time. Moreover, his season got over as suffered knee injury, playing only seven games in the season.
This season, he’s only been on the other side of the ball sparingly. Against the Texans, however, the coaches seemed to have changed their minds.
Hunter caught four passes for 59 yards and one touchdown. Entering this game, he only had 2 catches for 17 yards.
On defense, Travis Hunter posted three total tackles and one interception.
“I’ve been doing this since I was a baby — doing those type of things,” Hunter said after the game. “We’ve just got to come out with the win, is really my main focus.”
“[Hunter] made some critical plays for us on both sides of the football,” Coen said. “We’ve got to continue to get him the ball and keep building off of it and making sure it fits within the rhythm and flow of the game. But he definitely helped put us in a position to win that game today.”
All in all, what we saw was a wife standing up for her husband, and Sharpe appreciated that, whilst also making sure he got his message right that a player can’t play every snap on “both sides of the ball.”