Hendon

Hooker

Hooker began the year as the Lions’ No. 2, but was easily jumped by late-season free agent addition Teddy Bridgewater. Already 27 years old, Hendon’s NFL future is looking more theoretical than actual.

The release of Sudfeld means Hendon Hooker has presumably one the Lions’ backup quarterback job. Sudfeld was a sixth-round pick by the Washington football franchise in 2016 and was in the middle of a Week 17 controversy in 2020 when then-Eagles head coach Doug Pederson subbed out Jalen Hurts in favor of Sudfeld in a game the Eagles trailed by just three points. Washington ended up winning the game, with Pederson saying after that he thought it was a good time to give him an opportunity to get in some reps. Sudfeld has thrown for 188 yards, one touchdown, and one interception for his career. He hasn’t thrown a regular-season snap since his infamous outing with the Eagles.

Hooker played the first three-plus quarters of the game before giving way to Jake Fromm late in the fourth. The 26-year-old quarterback had some issues with holding onto the ball and lost a fumble on top of the interception, but he also showed off his athleticism and made some strong throws in his second preseason game. Hooker isn’t likely to win the backup job from Nate Sudfeld, but he at least put out some quality tape if the Lions were to move on from the 2023 third-round selection. It’s also possible that Detroit will carry three quarterbacks to begin the year.

Hooker sustained a concussion in Detroit’s preseason opener against the Giants. It doesn’t look like he’ll miss any time with the brain injury. Hooker, who missed all of 2023 with an ACL injury he suffered during his final collegiate season, completed five of nine passes for 36 scoreless yards last week against the Giants. He’ll get plenty of playing time this preseason.

Campbell also said that safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson and fullback Jason Cabinda, both on injured reserve, will have their practice windows opened. Hooker suffered a torn ACL in his final season at Tennessee and has been working his way back ever since. He will now serve as the Lions’ QB3 behind Teddy Bridgewater. With Bridgewater set to retire at the end of the year, Hooker will be looking to earn the backup job for 2024 in the remaining month of practices.

The Lions have 21 days to officially activate Hooker. The rookie suffered a torn ACL in his final season at Tennessee before declaring for the draft. Detroit added him as a project in the third round. With Jared Goff playing well again this year and the Lions being safe bets to make the playoffs, we won’t see any starts from Hooker in 2023. He will work toward a backup gig as he gets up to speed over the next few weeks. For now, Teddy Bridgewater will continue to serve as Goff’s understudy.

Hooker suffered a torn ACL late in his final season at Tennessee and was eventually drafted by the Lions in the third round of the 2023 NFL Draft. The rookie quarterback hasn’t done much in the way of football activity as he’s continued to recover from his injury, but designating him for return would give the Lions at least three weeks to look at him on the field. Once designated for return, the Lions would have three weeks to either activate him or rule him out for the season, but with Teddy Bridgewater currently serving as the backup to Jared Goff, it’s unlikely we see Hooker in 2023.

Longtime Lions beat writer Dave Birkett reports Hooker is expected to spend all of training camp on the active/NFI list. That will presumably give way to the reserve/NFI list, which would cost Hooker at least the first four games of the season. We wouldn’t be surprised if he ends up spending the entire year there behind Jared Goff and Nate Sudfeld. Hooker’s selection was for 2024 and beyond.

Hooker is still recovering from the torn ACL/meniscus he suffered late last season at Tennessee. Although he can technically be activated at any time, Hooker is a strong candidate for reserve/NFI, which would cost him at least the first four games of the year. Despite some serious overall upside, Hooker is extremely unlikely to make any re-draft noise before 2024, at which point he will already be 26 years old.

Hooker isn’t expected to contribute right away in his rookie season. In fact, there’s a good chance he remains sidelined until 2024 as he continues to recover from last year’s torn ACL. Still, the rookie third-round pick reportedly resumed throwing last month and feels good heading into training camp. How active Hooker will be in training camp is to be determined. He’ll be roughly seven months removed from surgery and is likely to focus more on rehab than any serious on-field workouts. It goes without saying that Hooker is completely off the redraft radar, but remains a worthwhile stash in dynasty leagues.