The Detroit Lions have had a carousel of backup quarterbacks in recent years but hopefully their third round draft pick will put an end to it. Tennessee quarterback Hendon Hooker is the newest Lions signal caller and should break through as the QB2 behind Jared Goff.

He had a second-to-third round grade depending on what site you looked at. There were two red flags holding Hooker back. His age (more on that later) and the fact he’s currently dealing with a torn ACL.

He may not be game ready by week one of the NFL season, but Hooker should be able to backup Goff early in the year.

He was a Heisman Trophy favorite near the end of last season until the injury. He went on to win SEC Offensive Player of the Year and was named third-team All-American.

The 2022 SEC Offensive Player of the Year was *not* Bryce Young

More on the @Vol_Football QB Hendon Hooker from @RyanDLeaf pic.twitter.com/pqvooqTgE4

— Good Morning Football (@gmfb) April 27, 2023

Strengths & Weaknesses

He had a 58:5 TD-INT ratio in the last two years. He was second in the country in pass efficiency and seventh in completion percentage last season.

He has a taller frame standing at 6’3 217 lbs, and had the fourth highest estimated athleticism score of any quarterback at the combine. It’s technically an estimate since he didn’t compete there.

Hooker has a solid arm, but not one of the best you’ll see. He also has good footwork which is one of his most consistent traits. He also avoids high risk throws, which is evident by his low interception numbers.

His weaknesses are troubling yet aren’t things that can’t be fixed. He rarely had to go through a slate of progressions in Tennessee’s offense. That will be much different in the NFL.

He’s also not the most accurate passer. And when he is forced to throw on the run, it gets even worse. Not to mention, he also took a lot of contact when he decided to tuck and run it. Not ideal as the competition he’s about to face is bigger and faster than ever.

Again, these are coachable items. Although, quarterbacks don’t usually get much more accurate going from college to the pros.

NFL.com’s player comparison for him is Desmond Ridder. Which makes zero sense given the fact Ridder has barely had a cup of coffee in the NFL. Can we compare a player with a guy who we still have no idea what he is? I wouldn’t think so.

Hooker has the makings of a solid NFL quarterback. It doesn’t appear he would ever become a top-tier guy, but that’s not to say he can’t.

On the Older Side

The other notable nugget about him is his age. He’s already 25 years old which as silly as it sounds can be a tad concerning.

My biggest problem with his age goes back to development. The fact he’s already 25 to me means the odds are lower that he is going to develop a lot further. That’s not to say he won’t get better with NFL coaching. But will he blossom like Josh Allen did? I have my doubts.

I’m worried this kid is already well-developed and isn’t going to get much better. It doens’t help that he played in a system at Tennessee that doesn’t resemble the professional game.

Again, this does not mean the alarms should be sounding off in Allen Park. The Lions have built a solid roster outside of the quarterback position. That takes a little stress off not having an elite QB1, which Goff is not. But as we all know, you typically need to have one of those elite guys to win a Super Bowl. If you don’t have one, you need to have an elite team around whoever you got.

Lions fans should be excited about adding Hooker to the roster. It’s the first time they’ve drafted a quarterback this high since Matthew Stafford in 2009. Before that, they selected Drew Stanton in the second round back in 2007.

Any time a team spends significant draft capital on a quarterback it’s exciting. Even if they are a little older. It may take some time for Lions fans to get a glimpse of Hooker in the Honolulu Blue with his current injury. But hopefully once they do, we’ll get to see why he was one of the best quarterbacks in college last year.

What Brad Holmes Said

“There was little things that kind of stood out to me, in terms of, he’d score a touchdown and instead of him being on the bench with the headset on or talking to the coach up the box, he’s standing on the sideline waiting to congratulate his extra-point team,” Holmes explained. “So, it’s the little things like that that show you kind of what kind of person he was. Regardless of background and all of that, he’s just a good football player. And if he wasn’t, then we wouldn’t have acquired him. But he’s a good person. He’s smart. He’s very talented. He’s had a unique journey that he’s overcame. So, he just has to get healthy. I believe that we have the right situation for him where he can just sit back, develop and get healthy. But, we’re excited about his upside.”