Jaguars cornerback Travis Hunter’s first NFL interception helped Jacksonville beat the Patriots on Sunday, but it also touched off an odd scene on the sideline.
Hunter spun the ball on the ground while celebrating the takeaway and teammate Josh Hines-Allen tried to retrieve it as a souvenir from a Patriots ballboy who had picked it up. Video of the interaction showed Hines-Allen trying to take the ball, which was zealously protected by the ballboy who shouted that Hines-Allen should not touch him. A Jaguars staffer eventually stepped in and the game went on.
During a videoconference on Monday, Jaguars head coach Liam Coen said the team was working to get the ball for Hunter.
“I was just talking about it,” Coen said, via Mark Long of the Associated Press. “I haven’t gotten a clean answer. We’ve been in communication with those guys over there. I think they’ve gotten it sorted out; I can’t say for certain if we got the actual ball or not. I know there was something that went on there. I think it’s all squared away. We’ll get it taken care of.”
Cornerback Jourdan Lewis noted that Hunter “could have helped us out by not spinning the ball and forgetting about it,” but the Jaguars later confirmed that they were able to secure the ball.