Jaguars’ Travis Hunter has surgery, to miss rest of season
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Spears: Playing both sides of the ball may not be feasible for Travis Hunter (1:13)
Marcus Spears voices his concern for Travis Hunter after it was announced he is having season-ending knee surgery. (1:13)
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Michael DiRoccoNov 11, 2025, 03:15 PM ET
- Michael DiRocco is an NFL Nation reporter at ESPN and covers the Jacksonville Jaguars. He previously covered the University of Florida for over a decade for ESPN and the Florida Times-Union. DiRocco graduated from Jacksonville University and is a multiple APSE award winner.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Jaguars rookie receiver/cornerback Travis Hunter will miss the remainder of the season after undergoing surgery on his right knee Tuesday, the team announced.
Hunter had the lateral collateral ligament repaired in Dallas by Dr. Dan Cooper and Dr. Kevin Kaplan, who is the Jaguars’ head team physician. There was no additional damage to the knee, the team announced, and Hunter is expected to return to full football activities within six months.
Hunter was placed on injured reserve on Oct. 31, one day after he suffered a noncontact injury during practice while on defense. The team wanted to confirm the severity of Hunter’s injury and how much time he would miss after an initial MRI revealed that Hunter’s ACL was intact.
Further testing revealed the damage to the LCL.
Hunter’s last game was his best offensive performance as a pro; he caught eight passes for 104 yards and his first NFL touchdown during a 35-7 loss to the Los Angeles Rams in London in Week 7.
The 2024 Heisman Trophy winner has 28 catches for 298 yards and a touchdown. On defense, he has 15 tackles and three pass breakups. He played 67% of the team’s offensive snaps and 36% of the defensive snaps until his injury.
Hunter was moving into the role as the team’s No. 1 receiver, partly because of his skills and playmaking ability but also because of Brian Thomas Jr.’s struggles (five drops).
After injuries to Hunter, Thomas (ankle in Week 9) and Dyami Brown (shoulder), the Jaguars acquired receiver Jakobi Meyers from the Las Vegas Raiders at the Nov. 4 trade deadline.
Meyers played 24 snaps and caught three passes for 41 yards in the Jaguars’ 36-29 loss at Houston this past Sunday.
Jacksonville next hosts the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday.
The Jaguars traded four draft picks — including a first-rounder in 2026 — to Cleveland to move up three spots to select Hunter second overall. The Jaguars also gave the Browns the No. 5 pick, a second-round pick and a fourth-round selection in the 2025 draft.
The Jaguars also received fourth- and sixth-round picks in the 2025 draft.
