Tennessee Volunteers quarterback Hendon Hooker was one of the best players in college football last season until he suffered an ACL tear vs South Carolina in November. While the recovery from knee surgery will limit his availability in his rookie season, it won’t prevent him from being a first-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.
Unlike the top quarterback prospects in 2023, Hooker didn’t have an opportunity to improve his stock during the pre-draft process with on-field work. While his peers had interviews and workouts, the 25-year-old quarterback’s only path to making a strong impression on NFL teams was through pre-draft visits and in-person meetings.
- Hendon Hooker stats (Tennessee): 58-5 TD-INT, 178.3 QB rating, 6,080 passing yards, 68.8% completion rate, 1,046 rushing yards in 24 games
In addition to the recovery from ACL surgery, Hooker also has several other factors working against him. He’ll be 26 years old in January, making him one of the oldest quarterback prospects (Stetson Bennett) in the 2023 NFL Draft. Furthermore, he played in an offensive scheme that is widely disregarded around the league with no carryover to the NFL.
It all resulted in Hooker being viewed as the fifth-best quarterback in the draft class and projected as a top-50 pick. With just days left until the 2023 NFL Draft, though, it appears Hooker’s meetings with teams have now firmly pushed him into the first-round discussion.
In a Reddit AMA, NFL Network’s draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah said he believes there is now a greater than 50 percent chance Hooker is drafted in the first round. It’s a sentiment shared by NFL insider Ian Rapoport who said he believes it’s more likely Hooker will be picked in Round 1.
The buzz surrounding Hooker has been building weeks for. He went to the Senior Bowl and drew strong reviews from teams he met with for his professionalism, maturity and mind. Thanks to pre-draft visits and interviews at the NFL Combine, Hooker’s stock keeps climbing.
NFL insider Ari Meirov of The 33rd Team spoke to people around the league regarding Hooker’s interview process. Multiple teams who held pre-draft visits with the former Volunteers’ quarterback offered glowing reviews of his character and leadership.
“Teams who brought him in for visits have been blown away by the person, and they could see this guy could be a franchise leader.”
Ari Meirov of NFL’s perspective on Hendon Hooker
Hooker won’t be competing for a starting job in 2023. Based on the fact he tore his ACL in November and athleticism is part of his game, he likely wouldn’t be cleared to play until midway through the 2023 NFL season. Even after he is physically cleared, an NFL coaching staff might not feel comfortable throwing him out on the field given the acclimation process he faces with the move from the Volunteers’ offense to an NFL scheme.
However, NFL teams interested in Hooker have a clear plan for him and it makes drafting him in the first round important. The 6-foot-3 quarterback will essentially redshirt in his rookie season, learning the offense and being mentored by a veteran starter. Once he’s more than a year removed from ACL surgery, Hooker would be the favorite to be the team’s starting quarterback in 2024.
The delayed path to a starting job creates an incentive to have Hooker locked into a longer contract. First-round picks each receive rookie deals that contain a fifth-year team option. If Hooker is drafted in the second round, the team that drafts him would effectively only have him under contract for three healthy seasons. Drafting Hooker in the first round provides them the option of having a starting quarterback under contract control for an additional year.
As far as what NFL team will draft Hooker, the Las Vegas Raiders, Minnesota Vikings and New Orleans Saints are three clubs to keep an eye on. Minnesota could draft him with the 23rd overall pick or move down a few spots then pick him. The Saints could select him 29th overall, while Las Vegas would need to move back into the late-20s to land him.
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