Travis Hunter trade grades: Jaguars get ‘A-‘ for blockbuster move, while Browns are betting on the future

The 2025 NFL Draft started with a bang on Thursday night. Cam Ward went No. 1 overall to the Tennessee Titans as expected, but then the Titans’ AFC South rivals swooped in to shake things up immediately afterward: The Jacksonville Jaguars moved up from No. 5 in a blockbuster deal with the Cleveland Browns, acquiring the No. 2 overall selection and swiping Colorado’s Travis Hunter, the coveted two-way standout.

Hunter long appeared to be a slam-dunk target of the Browns, but instead he’s headed to Florida, where he could quickly become Trevor Lawrence’s new No. 1 pass catcher opposite 2024 first-round pick Brian Thomas Jr. Cleveland, meanwhile, now has additional draft ammunition for its perpetual rebuild, adding the No. 36 overall pick in the 2025 draft, plus a 2026 first-rounder, in addition to this year’s No. 5 overall pick.

Only time will tell whether the big move for one of this year’s top prospects is worth the steep cost in Jacksonville, where new general manager James Gladstone is running the show. Which side of Thursday’s draft-altering trade registers as the instant winner, though? Here are our gut-reaction grades for the Travis Hunter deal:

Browns: C

• Received: No. 5 overall pick (DT Mason Graham), 2025 second-round pick (No. 36), 2025 fourth-round pick (No. 126), 2026 first-round pick

After weeks of reports and rumors tying Travis Hunter to the Browns, Cleveland opted instead to move down just three spots in the first round — and 22 spots in the fourth — to collect an additional first-rounder in 2026, plus another second-rounder this year. It’s a nice haul, and Mason Graham is no slouch as a potential pocket-wrecker alongside Myles Garrett, but passing up on a potentially transcendent playmaker like Hunter for an interior defensive lineman? It just doesn’t smell like a clear success, unless of course a lineup-changing addition at quarterback is around the corner. This bet is all about the long term, and more specifically 2026, when a young signal-caller might finally surface as their priority. For that reason, though, it’s much harder to call the Browns the winners when it’s Jacksonville that appears to be getting the bona fide weapon right away.

Jaguars: A-

• Received: No. 2 overall pick (WR/CB Travis Hunter), 2025 fourth-round pick (No. 104), 2025 sixth-round pick (No. 200)

Jacksonville wasted no time making a splash under new general manager James Gladstone, essentially giving up a pair of Day 2 picks to move up just three spots on Thursday, plus 22 spots in the fourth round. And the end result with the top pick: just one of the most unique prospects to come out of college football in … decades? Look, Hunter’s two-way prowess may or may not be sustainable at the NFL level, but there’s a reason former Titans general manager Ran Carthon compared him to Champ Bailey and Charles Woodson. He profiles as a Grade-A starter at either wide receiver or cornerback, thanks to elite instincts and ball skills. The Jaguars sorely needed a foundational playmaker in this draft, and now they have one. Provided they’re right back in the playoff mix out of the AFC South, the first-rounder they sent to Cleveland might not end up being such a major loss, either.