The Pittsburgh Steelers didn't have any chance of landing Travis Hunter in the 2025 NFL Draft; although, he would have fixed two areas of concern for the team. The young player has made headlines as he is a top talent at both wide receiver and cornerback, which is something Pittsburgh could have used going into the 2025 season. It is unclear how his skills will be used at the NFL level, but the Jacksonville Jaguars seem content to allow him to play both sides of the ball.
Hunter is the first player to be fully committed to playing both sides of the ball. Other guys in the past have played some offense while playing cornerback, but nothing like what Hunter did at the college level.
The Steelers have an interesting and versatile prospect themselves in Hollis Mathis, who is in attendance at rookie minicamp. Mathis played his college football at William & Mary, and he made a name for himself as a quarterback early on in his career before switching to wide receiver.
Mathis did not play both sides of the ball, so the more apt comparison is probably former Pittsburgh quarterback Kordell Stewart. Mathis started games at quarterback and wide receiver throughout his college career, and he became just the second player in college football history to record 1,000 passing yards, 1,000 rushing yards, and 1,000 receiving yards. The only other player to do so was Paul Dombrowski of New Mexico State from 2002 through 2005.
Mathis is officially with the Steelers as a wide receiver, and he is looking to earn an invite to training camp in order to get a shot to make the final roster or the practice squad. He was likely invited to minicamp due to his exceptional football prowess and versatility as well as his local ties, he is from Pittsburgh and he went to high school at Penn Hills. He also went to Head Coach Mike Tomlin's alma mater, which certainly got the attention of the coach.
The quarterback turned wide receiver is an extreme long shot to make any noise in Pittsburgh, but he is an awesome story to cheer for. He is also quite the weapon on the field if he is given a chance. He contributed in all three facets of offense during every season of his college career, which is extremely rare to see.
Steelers' Mathis Spoke About Being With The Team
Mathis is getting his first taste of the NFL after playing six seasons at a relatively small school, which is obviously a major adjustment. It will be an even larger transition if he is able to make it past rookie minicamp. He spoke about what he has learned so far along this process, as well as what it is like to be with the Steelers with Chris Adamski on Saturday.
"I learned that this business is fun, I learned that this organization is pretty much what it looks like from the outside." Mathis said. "It's a great organization, a lot of very smart people teaching a great game. I'm just blessed and honored to even be around. I'm just happy to get better everyday and learn what I can."
Despite Mathis' incredible feat at the college level, he never really had any chance of getting drafted into the NFL. He will have to make quite the name for himself throughout this process in order to find a way on to an active roster.
If he doesn't it does not mean his NFL career is over, he could play in the United Football League or the Canadian Football League. He could improve his game in one of those spots and maybe catch the NFL's eye in another year or two.
