Lions QB Hendon Hooker enter camp in a competition with Kyle Allen for the team’s backup quarterback job. However, Allen has secured the job and Lions HC Dan Campbell wondered whether Hooker might benefit from a change of scenery.
“How much development do you believe there is? We’re talking about Hooker right now, how much development do you believe there still is? Sometimes, does the player need a change of scenery?” Campbell said, via Pro Football Talk .
Campbell wished Hooker would have played better in the team’s preseason finale, but he understands that more goes into an exhibition game than just one player’s performance.
“I wish Hooker — and I know he does — would have had a better outing, but you’ve got to take it with a grain of salt,” Campbell said. “It’s not like he was playing with our first o-line out there, or first team skill position, all of that. You take that all into account as well. I thought he was prepared, I thought he was ready, looked pretty calm, and circumstances didn’t work out today, that’s all.”
Hooker, 27, opted to transfer to Tennessee after spending the first three years of his career at Virginia Tech. He started two seasons for the Volunteers and was in the thick of the Heisman race in 2022 before tearing his ACL.
The Lions selected Hooker with the No. 68 overall pick in the third round of the 2023 NFL Draft. He signed a four-year, $5,719,022 rookie contract that includes a $1,159,289 signing bonus.
In 2024, Hooker appeared in three games for the Lions and completed six of nine passes for 62 yards.
During his college career at Virginia Tech and Tennessee, Hooker completed 66.9 percent of his passes for 8,975 yards, 80 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions throughout five seasons and 45 games played. He also rushed for 2,079 yards and 25 touchdowns.
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