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Versus: Travis Hunter provides threat to Raiders on both sides of the ball

Oct 29, 2025 at 03:54 PM

Levi Edwards

Digital Team Reporter

The Las Vegas Raiders went into the bye week with a sour taste in their mouth.

The Silver and Black were held to under 100 offensive yards against the Kansas City Chiefs and were shutout 31-0 in their last game. After a week of reflection and with several key players returning from injury, the Raiders could potentially get back on the right track when taking on the Jacksonville Jaguars.

However like the Raiders, Jacksonville is also coming off their bye week following a blowout loss of their own to their Los Angeles Rams. Righting their wrongs will equally be as important to them.

Take a look at three key matchups that could determine the outcome of the game.

Tre Tucker vs. Travis Hunter

Speed vs. speed will matchup on the line of scrimmage between Tre Tucker and the Jaguars' freaky athletic rookie.

While injuries have played a factor in Tucker's added responsibilities in the Raiders offense, it hasn't made it any less impressive. Through seven games, Tucker has been the number one receiver for the team with the most receiving yards (389) and receiving touchdowns (four).

According to Next Gen Stats, he's clocked 18 miles per hour on 35 of his routes run. He's also reached over 20 miles an hour on five of his routes.

"Just the work that goes into it all year around and the people I'm around make it a lot easier," Tucker said of his success. "I took two weeks off at the end of last season and got to work. I can't tell you all my secrets, but the work – that's been a big help for me."

Travis Hunter, the second defensive player in college football history to win the Heisman Trophy, seems to be the best candidate to shadow Tucker – even for a limited period of time. Despite only playing 35.9 percent of defensive snaps due to his additional role in the offense, Hunter has three pass deflections and has held quarterbacks to a 50 percent completion percentage in coverage.

"He's a really good football player, no surprise, but it shows," Pete Carroll said when asked about Hunter. "I mean, he's got savvy, he's got toughness about him, he's play making, you can see him stealing the ball from guys when he's making catches and aggressive in his coverage as well. He's a really good blocker, and I think that contributes because of his background playing defense and making tackles and hitting people and all that."

Kyu Blu Kelly vs. Travis Hunter

For the first time in my years of writing these weekly position matchups, I'm including a player in two separate matchups on both sides of the ball.

And that's why the Jaguars traded up to draft Travis Hunter, who's as much as a threat on offense as he is defense.

As previously mentioned, Hunter has appeared in nearly 36 percent of defensive snaps. But that number almost doubles when looking at his time on offense. The rookie leads the Jags in receptions (28) and is second behind Brian Thomas Jr. in receiving yards (298). Hunter scored his first NFL touchdown in Week 7 against the Los Angeles Rams, sprinting on a corner route for the impressive 34-yard grab.

"He's been playing both ways since he was in little league football, and he hasn't known it any different," Carroll said. "So, it seems so unique to everybody for this to occur, but it isn't to him, and I anticipated that he would respond that way because he's such a natural football player and a competitor."

With Eric Stokes likely shadowing Thomas Jr. for the majority of the game, Kyu Blu Kelly could be tasked with the challenge of facing Hunter in coverage. After having a rough start to the season, Kelly has bounced back in his last two outings, allowing just 30 yards and a 42.5 completion percentage. Considering Kelly is a more physical cornerback, he'll have a chance at stopping Hunter at the point of attack on his releases.

Brock Bowers vs. Devin Lloyd

Brock Bowers was a full participant in practice Wednesday after missing the last three games due to a knee injury.

There's no need to extensively explain why Bowers' return is so vital to the Raiders offense. In the games he's missed, Las Vegas averaged nearly 140 passing yards. In Bowers' one game played at full health this season, he recorded a game-high 103 receiving yards. It's also worth noting Bowers totaled 99 receiving yards on 11 catches in the Raiders' 19-14 victory over the Jaguars last year.

"We had two practices during the bye week and I was feeling pretty good running around," Bowers said Wednesday. "I have a lot of banked reps. ... We're through it now. It's in the past so I'm excited to get back out there."

Jaguars linebacker Devin Lloyd will try to limit Bowers in the middle of the field. Lloyd, a 2022 first-round pick, has been enjoying his best season to date, winning the AFC Defensive Player of the Month in September. His four interceptions are currently tied for the most in the league and he holds the highest coverage grade (91.6) from Pro Football Focus of any off-ball linebacker.

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Las Vegas Raiders signage in the weight room during practice at Intermountain Health Performance Center.