The NFL league office is on an absolute tear with retroactive punishment lately, dropping heavy fine checks every Saturday on plays that officials didn’t even flag live.
Travis Hunter was the latest one to get hit.
Travis Hunter Fined $14K Plus for Mid-Game Celebration
Hunter was fined $14,926 by the NFL for a mid-game celebration, according to Ryan O’Halloran.
The Jaguars were already trailing, and Hunter, as usual, came in clutch to save the day by picking off C.J. Stroud at the 4-yard line. It was the play that kept the hopes alive for the Jags, even though they ended up losing the game.
The almost game-changing moment made the two-way star take off his helmet before stepping off the field to celebrate. In the heat of the moment, live game officials missed it entirely. The Jaguars took over possession without a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, taking a bite out of their field position.
According to the NFL rulebook, however, removing a helmet while still inside the field of play or end zone is a non-negotiable unsportsmanlike violation.
The league treats unapproved helmet removal as a strict safety and conduct breach, regardless of whether a referee’s whistle caught it live. When the league office reviewed the game footage, they retroactively hit Hunter with a heavy $14,926 fine.
Also, the NFL went easy on him since this was his first offense. A second one would reportedly cost him about $20,897.
However, Hunter holds the option to appeal if he believes the fine is undeserved.
The fine is small change compared to the damage Hunter is starting to inflict on defenses.
Week 6 felt like the exact moment the game fully clicked for the two-way star. Even after taking a tough pill to swallow against Houston, Liam Coen expects Hunter to keep hammering away and elevate a Jacksonville squad that needs its top star operating at full throttle.
Hunter Finally Had His Breakout Game of the Season
“Just keep chomping away at it,” Coen said. “We’re not going to over-rotate to a good game. We want to continue to build. There’s a lot of games left in the season.”
Just like the offseason rumors, Hunter’s role has been largely defense-heavy this season. Through six games, he has played 311 defensive snaps, compared to just 31 on offense.
Against Houston, however, he did get slightly more offensive snaps, since Coen entirely benched WR Brian Thomas Jr.
He caught three passes for 40 yards on Jacksonville’s fourth-quarter touchdown drive, including a 7-yard score that pulled the Jaguars within three points.
On Houston’s next possession, he intercepted Stroud in the end zone to prevent the Texans from extending their lead.
“We want to make sure that we’re continuing to build on the right trajectory that gives us the best chance to win on Sundays,” Coen said. “We’ve won a lot of games with him maybe not playing 100 snaps. And last week, you saw his impact and effect on games where he is playing more.”
That two-way tightrope isn’t going anywhere, but Jacksonville has clearly figured out where he moves the needle most. Hunter has morphed into a full-blown shutdown corner on defense, logging a staggering 98% of snaps against Houston, while Coen deploys him as a surgical strike weapon on offense through targeted package plays.
“It’s about the team. It’s about the group,” Coen said. “He’s no different. And he’s going to continue to help us win on Sundays.”
Fourth-Quarter Incident vs. Texans Cost Jaguars’ Travis Hunter $14K+