The Falcons and Jaguars have agreed to a swap of defensive linemen.
Adam Schefter of ESPN reports that Atlanta has agreed to send defensive tackle Ruke Orhorhoro to Jacksonville in exchange for defensive tackle Maason Smith. Both players were second-round picks in 2024 with Orhorhoro going to the Falcons at No. 35 and Smith going to the Jags at No. 48.
Orhorhoro played in eight games as a rookie and all 17 games last season. He made eight starts and finished the season with 25 tackles and 3.5 sacks.
Smith played 24 games and started seven times over his first two seasons. He had 32 tackles and three sacks in those appearances.
The NFL has announced the names of the current and former players that will take part in next week’s draft by announcing second-round picks.
The list includes players associated with all 32 teams, including Cardinals running back James Conner. Conner has strong ties to the Pittsburgh area after playing for the Steelers and attending Pitt, which likely made him an easy choice as the Cardinals’ representative.
Former Bears tackle Jimbo Covert, former Cowboys running back Tony Dorsett, former Chiefs defensive lineman Bill Maas, current Vikings tackle Brian O’Neill, former Jets running back Curtis Martin, and former 49ers punter Andy Lee are other Pitt alums who are set to take part.
The hometown team will be represented by four players. Former Steelers Jerome Bettis and John Stallworth will be joined by Joey Porter Sr. and Jr. next Friday.
The other players taking part and their team affiliations appear below:
Falcons: Michael Turner
Ravens: Mark Ingram
Bills: Shane Conlan
Panthers: Jake Delhomme
Bengals: Ken Anderson
Browns: Phil Dawson
Cowboys: Drew Pearson
Broncos: T.J. Ward
Lions: Calvin Johnson
Packers: John Kuhn
Texans: Billy Miller
Colts: Pat McAfee
Jaguars: Paul Posluszny
Raiders: Matt Millen
Chargers: Shawne Merriman
Rams: Tavon Austin
Dolphins: Dwight Stephenson
Patriots: Deion Branch
Saints: Marques Colston
Giants: Osi Umenyiora
Eagles: Brian Westbrook
Seahawks: Cliff Avril
Buccaneers: Ronde Barber
Titans: Jeffery Simmons
Commanders: Mark Rypien
A recent report from NFL Network indicated that Travis Hunter will transition in his second season with the Jaguars to the role of full-time cornerback and part-time receiver.
That’s apparently news to Hunter.
Hunter reposted a clip of the conversation from NFLN with this message: “Who told you this?”
The Jaguars moved up to No. 2 in last year’s draft — giving up the fifth overall pick in 2025 and their 2026 first-rounder (plus more) — to get Hunter. The argument was that they were getting two full-time players in one.
Last year’s production from Hunter, capped by a season-ending knee injury, may have caused the Jaguars to reconsider the wisdom of giving one player full-time two-way duties. And if the Jaguars are going to use Hunter primarily on one side of the ball, it arguably makes more sense to put him at receiver. Plenty of teams saw him in the runup to the 2025 draft primarily as a receiver and not as a corner. And the receiver market currently is more robust financially than the cornerback market.
Then there’s the possibility the Jaguars are quietly considering the possibility of trading receiver Brian Thomas Jr. before, during, or immediately after the draft. Although the Jaguars have called such chatter “fraudulent,” talk of a potential trade hasn’t fully dissipated. By putting out the word that Hunter will be primarily playing corner, the perception that Thomas will remain on the Jaguars becomes strengthened.
Which could help them get more for him, if they decide to trade him. Which would then allow them to slide Hunter from CB to WR.
In seven games last year (with four starts), Hunter played 67 percent of the offensive snaps and 36 percent of the defensive snaps. Which is a far cry from the full-time, two-way player the Jaguars claimed to be getting.
Jaguars General Manager James Gladstone updated Travis Hunter’s knee rehab this week and said that the second overall pick in the 2025 draft will be limited in the offseason with the expectation that he’ll be fully cleared for training camp.
Once Hunter is healthy enough to get back to football activities, his efforts are expected to be focused on the defensive side of the ball. Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reports that the team is planning for Hunter to be a full-time cornerback and an occasional contributor on offense as a wide receiver.
Gladstone signaled things were moving that way right after the Jaguars were eliminated from the playoffs and a report in February indicated that the cornerback-first plan was in place. That was what many expected to be the case after Hunter won the Heisman at Colorado in 2024, but Hunter saw more time on offense than defense before his season-ending injury.
When the Jaguars paid a heavy price to trade up for Hunter last year, there was a lot of talk about getting two players in one. There were some flashes of that during his rookie season, but nailing down the corner job alone might be the optimal scenario in Jacksonville for Year Two.
Jaguars head coach Liam Coen and General Manager James Gladstone are heading into their second draft in Jacksonville, and this year they feel a lot more settled into their jobs.
Last year, Coen was hired late in the postseason and Gladstone was hired just before the Scouting Combine, and they were still getting to know each other and getting their staffs settled in while also preparing for the draft. Coen said this year, everything is established and all the focus is on the task at hand.
“A little less frantic, I guess you could call it, in terms of how fast everything happened last year and getting not just the scouting staff onboarded, but the coaches then onboarded to new procedures and modes of operation,” Coen said. “So, I think just some of the familiarities really helped just the flow and the way that we operate on a day-to-day basis, the schedule, the routine, what the coaches expect. That’s been very clear and concise throughout the process and I think it’s just allowed us to maybe get to different or deeper dialogue maybe a little bit quicker on some of the guys that we’re really honing in on.”
Gladstone echoed that sentiment.
“This time last year we were in true discovery mode. We were learning on the fly,” Gladstone said.
Coen and Gladstone had an impressive first year, taking over a 4-13 team and going 13-4 in Year One. Now they’re firmly established and preparing for a draft that they hope sets them up to take the next step in 2026.
