While Colorado cornerback/wide receiver Travis Hunter can’t control which team selects him in the upcoming NFL Draft, he sent quite a message to would-be employers when he recently said he’d consider “never playing football again” if a club tried to stop him from being a two-way player as a rookie.
While speaking with reporters on Thursday, Cleveland Browns general manager Andrew Berry either intentionally or unintentionally delivered a strong response to those words when he compared Hunter to Los Angeles Dodgers star and three-time Most Valuable Player Shohei Ohtani.
“It’s a little bit like Ohtani,” Berry said about how Cleveland could use Hunter, as shared by Kevin Patra of the NFL’s website. “You know he’s playing one side, and he’s an outstanding player. If he’s a pitcher or hitter, he’s an outstanding player. You, obviously, get a unicorn if you use him both ways.”
The Browns currently hold the draft’s second pick and, per individuals such as ESPN’s Jordan Raanan and The Athletic’s Dane Brugler, are expected to select Hunter over Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders and Penn State pass-rusher Abdul Carter. As of Thursday afternoon, DraftKings Sportsbook had Hunter as the betting favorite at -380 odds to be the draft’s second choice.
NFL insiders such as Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated have mentioned throughout the spring that the Browns need help on both sides of the ball and, thus, should give Hunter the playing opportunities he desires. On Thursday, Berry insisted that Hunter’s threat about possibly quitting the sport “really doesn’t” affect the club’s potential draft strategy.
“I think one of the things that you can’t fully appreciate until you actually see Travis play live is his elite conditioning,” Berry added. “Going out and seeing him play at Colorado, he really never comes off the field. It’s unbelievable because there are more plays in a college game than the pro game. That being said, what he would attempt to do has not been done in our league, but we necessarily wouldn’t put a cap on or govern in terms of what he could do. …I think I mentioned before that we would see his first home as receiver and his second home as the defensive side of the ball.”
According to Daniel Oyefusi of ESPN, Berry indicated on Thursday that the Browns haven’t yet made a final decision on what to do with the No. 2 pick. That said, it seems like Hunter will soon be calling Cleveland home unless a different team makes Berry a “‘Godfather’ offer” for the right to draft the Colorado unicorn on April 24.
