Unicorn Watch: 6 rare milestones Travis Hunter could hit in NFL

Travis Hunter faces sky-high expectations in his first NFL season after the Jacksonville Jaguars drafted him second overall. The Heisman Trophy winner is the league's most promising two-way star in decades. He could be in a position to post a campaign for the ages thanks to his ability to excel as both a wide receiver and cornerback.

Here are six remarkable milestones that Hunter can hit in Year 1 and beyond.

Workload 💪

400-400 snaps

No player has recorded 400 snaps on offense and defense in the same season since snaps were first tracked in 2006, according to Jordan Dajani of CBS Sports. Hunter topped those marks by a significant margin in each of his two seasons at Colorado. Los Angeles Chargers third-year defensive lineman/fullback Scott Matlock is the only active player with 300 career snaps on both sides of the ball. Matlock is also one of three players in the past 25 years with 15 snaps on offense and defense in a single game, along with New England Patriots star Julian Edelman and Mike Furrey of the Cleveland Browns, per ESPN's Keith Jenkins. It feels like a matter of time until Hunter joins these lists.

Multiple starts on offense and defense in same game

Deion Sanders coached Hunter at Colorado, and the NFL's newest two-way star has a chance to join his former boss as the latest player to start multiple games on both offense and defense, according to NFL.com's Dante Koplowitz-Fleming. The Hall of Famer started on both sides of the ball in eight games in '96 and finished that season with 33 tackles and two interceptions defensively to go along with 36 receptions for 475 yards and one touchdown.

Stat lines 📈

TD catch + INT

Only three players in the Super Bowl era have registered a touchdown reception and an interception in the same game (Brian Dawkins was the last one in 2002). No player has posted a receiving touchdown and a pick-6 in the same contest in the Super Bowl era, however. Los Angeles Rams star Tom Fears was the last one to accomplish such a thing in 1948.

Hunter should have a shot at history after leading the Big 12 with 15 touchdown receptions in 2024 and collecting four interceptions to bring his total to seven picks across two seasons at Colorado. Although he didn't return any of his interceptions with the Buffaloes for a touchdown, he did register a TD reception and a pick-6 in the same game at FCS school Jackson State.

Mike Vrabel (2005), J.J. Watt (2014), and Marcus Jones (2022) are the only players in recent memory to record a touchdown catch and a pick-6 in the same season.

Lead team in TD grabs, INTs

This would also be a first in the Super Bowl era, as no player has topped a team in touchdown grabs and defensive interceptions in the same season since Chicago Bears Pro Bowler Gene Schroeder in 1951, per Koplowitz-Fleming. Leading Jacksonville in picks may be an easier task; no Jaguars player had more than one interception in 2024. But it'll be much harder to grab the No. 1 spot for receiving TDs, as the AFC South club found a stud in receiver Brian Thomas Jr. He caught 10 touchdowns as a rookie last year while every other player on the team had nine combined.

Individual awards 🏆

Pro Bowl on offense and defense

The NFL could encounter some unprecedented scenarios when it comes to Hunter and individual accolades. No first-year player has ever been named both Offensive and Defensive Rookie of the Year. Additionally, Hunter could become the first star selected to the Pro Bowl on offense and defense throughout a career, notes Koplowitz-Fleming.

MVP

A quarterback has been named NFL MVP in each of the past 12 years. A wide receiver or defensive back has never won the award. It's hard to imagine a normal non-QB winning the league's most prestigious individual honor in today's game, so it might take an unusual talent to end passers' dominance. Enter Hunter, who could offer something the NFL hasn't seen in decades while standing out at two premier positions. Time will tell if Hunter will meet the expectations as a highly touted two-way sensation. If his offensive and defensive skills translate to the league with no issues, he'll instantly become one of the sport's most valuable players.