How Travis Hunter sweetens Jessie Bates' move to Jaguars

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  Michael DiRoccoNov 12, 2026, 05:19 PM ET

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  Michael DiRocco is an NFL Nation reporter at ESPN and covers the Jacksonville Jaguars. He previously covered the University of Florida for over a decade for ESPN and the Florida Times-Union. DiRocco graduated from Jacksonville University and is a multiple APSE award winner.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Safety Jessie Bates III said Thursday that he's excited about joining the Jacksonville Jaguars for the rest of the season. But not, apparently, as excited as his nephews.

Mostly because their uncle is now teammates with Travis Hunter. The Jaguars posted a video of Bates' ride to the team's facility Monday after being acquired in a trade with the Atlanta Falcons, and during the drive Bates took a FaceTime call from one of his nephews, who said, "You finally get to work with Travis Hunter."

Wait until they find out Bates' locker is next to Hunter's.

"I don't know if my nephews will be more excited," Bates joked. "I don't know if you guys have seen that video, but I don't think they care that I'm here. I think they're happy I'm just here with Travis.

"My nephews, they're 10 and 7, and you'd think that they're 21 years old the way they know how to work the internet and just their knowledge of the game itself. It's really cool to see. And yeah, they'll be excited when they get down here in a couple weeks."

Hunter smiled when asked about the video Thursday and said he would make sure he got Bates' nephews a jersey.