The NFL has not seen a full-time, two-way player since Hall-of-Fame defensive back Deion Sanders made eight starts at wide receiver in 1996 with the Dallas Cowboys.

So the excitement around Jacksonville Jaguars' second-overall draft pick and Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter entering his rookie campaign is palpable.

Hunter became the first ever college player to win both the Fred Biletnikoff Award, given to NCAA's top wide receiver, and the Chuck Bednarik Award, given to the top defensive player in college football. He played 1,360 snaps in his last college season, the most in NCAA by a wide margin.

Figuring out how to optimize the talents of the combo wide receiver-cornerback unicorn is the task at hand for Jaguars' first-year coach Liam Coen.

“He’s one of the most crazy in-shape players I’ve ever seen," Coen said in the first week of training camp in July, per The Athletic's Jeff Howe.

"His stamina is crazy. He can just go … forever. I think he’s itching to do it more, and we’re trying to make sure we do the teaching progression (correctly), so he can go play fast. Ultimately, how do we deploy him on both sides of the ball? We’ve still got to kind of figure that out. What’s he truly best at?”

The last player who spent their career playing full-time on both sides of the ball was Hall of Fame centre and linebacker Chuck Bednarik, who retired from football in 1962.

Outside of Sanders' eight starts at wide receiver in 1996, he was mainly used in gadget plays - as are all players who touch the field on both sides of the ball in the Super Bowl era.

From linebacker Mike Vrabel and his 12 career touchdown receptions with Tom Brady and the New England Patriots to Hall of Fame defensive tackle William "the Refrigerator" Perry bulldozing for short rushing touchdowns in the '80s with the Chicago Bears, two-way players have largely been restricted to appearances for a play or two per game for decades.

The game of football is punishing, and players at their physical peak can struggle to make it through a game playing just one side of the ball. How can Hunter stay fresh on both sides without rest between possessions?

“He can handle it,” Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence said at the beginning of camp in July. “That’s what’s unique and special about him. He’s the best-conditioned guy I think I’ve ever seen. He can run all day up and down the field. I haven’t seen him tired one time."

The plan for Hunter in camp and in their first game of preseason action has been to start at wide receiver with the first team on offence and take reps with the second unit on defence.

In their preseason opener against the Pittsburgh Steelers on August 9, Hunter played 11 of 12 snaps with the first-team offence and played every snap with the second-team defence over two drives. He finished with two catches on offence and no tackles on defence.

"He’s fresh when he goes into the locker room after practice," Lawrence added at the beginning of camp. "Everybody else is gassed, and he’s like, ‘I feel great.’ It’s unique. I don’t know what he does, or if he’s just born that way. I know he works really hard, but it’s impressive to see him (in action).”

For all the early success and buzz out of camp, the issue many pundits pondered has arisen, before the season opener has been played: Hunter missed the team's second preseason game against the New Orleans Saints with an upper-body injury.

“I’ve got to see what he looks like tomorrow,” Coen told reporters on Tuesday. “I think the goal is to try to get him out there for the joint [practices].”

Hunter's health is going to be a key component of his success, as well as his ability to complete team preparation to play on both sides of the ball. But if it all works out, what kind of ceiling exists for the 22-year-old?

Finding other two-way comparisons for Travis Hunter

Players who excel both on offence and defence in most sports are inherently valuable, as expected.

The NHL's Selke Trophy is given to the best defensive forward each year, and is one of the marquee awards players seek year after year, with the Florida Panthers' Aleksander Barkov a two-time defending owner of that award.

But hockey players are on the ice in offensive and defensive capacities throughout the game, same as with basketball.

There's only one other major sport that follows the style of football in which a two-way player can exist: Baseball, where a player who doubles as a pitcher and hitter is considered a unicorn.

Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani is currently the only player who does both at the major-league level, and his prowess on both sides of the ball in baseball have earned him three MVP awards over the last four seasons.

The last time a non-quarterback won the NFL's MVP award was in 2012, when Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson took home the honour behind a 2000-yard rushing campaign.

Neither a wide receiver nor a cornerback has ever claimed the award, and quarterbacks have taken home the award 48 of 69 times in NFL history.

Hunter took home the Heisman Award last year as college football's top player, and he already joined rare territory as only the second defensive back to earn that award, and fourth wide receiver to earn that award.

If Hunter can thrive on both sides of the ball, as he did in his final year at Colorado (he caught 96 passes for 1,258 yards and 15 touchdowns, as well as four interceptions and 36 tackles on defence), there's no reason to believe he can't make history again as the NFL's MVP in his career.