Travis Hunter made a strong request to NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell when he said that he wants him to say “Wide receiver and DB” when announcing his name on draft day. The 2024 Heisman Trophy winner wants to play both sides of the ball. But that might not be possible for him. Once draft day hits, it’s the team that picks him who’ll decide where he lines up. 

But for now, a certain Super Bowl champ and retired NFL vet has chimed in with some pretty strong advice for the 21-year-old. It’s not exactly what Travis wants to hear, but it might be what he needs. On Tuesday, Patriots legend Devin McCourty dropped by the Up & Adams show, and of course, Travis Hunter’s name came up.

Host Kay Adams asked the former NFL safety what he thought about Hunter’s bold draft-day request. The former NFLer, while giving the young player his flowers, made it clear that the NFL is different from college football. “The guy’s unbelievable. I played 115 snaps in a college game one time. I was exhausted. He did that week in and week out. With that being said, I do think the NFL season is different than college.“

McCourty offered Travis some thoughtful, experience-backed advice. He pointed out that Hunter should focus on offense first and master it. The 37-year-old said that the Colorado star could still line up on defense occasionally, but doing both full-time just isn’t realistic. McCourty also highlighted the injury factor, saying, “You don’t want to go out there and do well. But keep getting injured or your body doesn’t make it through a year because then that affects how much you get paid.” 

In a way, you could say Devin’s just putting things in perspective from an NFL veteran’s lens. “I don’t think there’s going to be an advantage to play both ways other than your pride on saying, I played both ways. I don’t know if it’s going to make sense from a financial situation and from a longevity career for him to have in the NFL,” he added.

So while McCourty’s take brings up the bigger picture, the immediate question still looms. Who’s going to draft Travis, and how do they plan to use him?

Browns might just have plans for Travis Hunter

The Cleveland Browns have the No. 2 pick in the first round. And assuming that the Titans are likely to pick Cam Ward as the first overall pick, the Browns have three options: Shedeur Sanders, Travis Hunter, or Abdul Carter. Now, Shedeur Sanders is sliding down the mock drafts. And there is a good chance Hunter hears his name before Abdul Carter. Although the team needs a QB as well, the talk around is that there’s a high possibility they will pick Travis Hunter. NFL Insider Adam Schefter, over on X, wrote, “There are signs that point to the Browns now using the No. 2 overall pick on Colorado standout Travis Hunter.“

Then, on top of that, there’s the Vegas betting odds, probably the biggest hint so far. The markets shifted hard in favor of the Browns picking Travis Hunter, which usually doesn’t happen without some inside buzz. And when money’s on the line, markets are rarely wrong. Then, another insider, Field Yates, came through with insights that felt like the cherry on top. “The biggest piece of feedback that I got was – us in the media spend a lot of time trying to devise a plan for what it’s going to look like for Travis Hunter at the NFL level. NFL teams’ mindset is, ‘We’re going to bring the kid in, and we’re going to figure it out. Because we’re not putting the ceiling on Travis Hunter,’” Yates said.

Yates went over Mel Kiper Jr.’s latest mock draft. And interestingly, Hunter is locked in at No. 2 for the Browns. Cleveland doesn’t have both WR and CB depth on their roster. Right now, Jerry Jeudy is their only real receiving threat, so pairing him with Travis could seriously level up their pass game. And for the QB, they will likely pick one in the later rounds.

So that makes a strong case for the Colorado star to land in Cleveland. But we can’t say anything for sure until we hear it on draft day. So, what do you think, will the Browns be picking Hunter this year?