JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The NFL has been quite fine-heavy this season, and Jacksonville Jaguars star Travis Hunter is the latest to be hit with one.

Hunter was fined $14,926 by the NFL this week for removing his helmet on the field against the Houston Texans in last week's 34-31 loss, which happened after Hunter picked off C.J. Stroud in the end-zone in the fourth-quarter for arguably the biggest moment in the game from the Jacksonville side.

Hunter's Fine

While this seems like quite the expensive fine for Hunter merely celebrating an exceptional play at a pivotal moment of the game, it does follow the letter of the NFL's rules, and the Jaguars are lucky that they were not hit with an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for 15 yards, which Rule 12, Section 3, Article 1 of the NFL's rules state is the penalty for "Removal of his helmet by a player in the field of play or the end zone during a celebration or demonstration, or during a confrontation with a game official or any other player."

A bit silly? Yes, but it is the NFL's rules, and Hunter will now see the amount taken out of his next game check unless he appeals the decision and wins it, which seems unlikely since Hunter did clearly and plainly take his helmet off.

With that said, the Jaguars would likely welcome any future fines (but no penalties in close games) if Hunter keeps looking like one of the best players on the field and, arguably, the most versatile player in the game if he continues to produce on both sides of the ball. It seems like the Jaguars have found the right balance for Hunter, letting him play every snap on defense as their full-time CB1 and then stepping in on offense in certain packages.

Hunter clearly doesn't need a large snap count on offense to make an impact, either. He played just nine offensive snaps against the Texans last week but still produced four catches for 59 yards and a touchdown, racking up two explosive plays to set up two different scoring drives for the Jaguars. He did all of this while shadowing Nico Collins and more than held his own in that regard as well.

"That was part of the plan, getting him a little bit more involved early, made some critical plays for us on both sides of the football, obviously. Had the interception late, that gave us a chance to win the game. Proud of the way he completed, made some plays for us on offense and got to keep building off it," Jaguars head coach Liam Coen said about Hunter after Week 6.

Hunter has looked like an elite cornerback over the past month, and now the production is starting to see an uptick on offense. As long as Hunter keeps making plays, and remembers to keep his helmet on, the Jaguars are going to continue to see their 2025 draft gamble pay off in a big way.