NFL insider: Hendon Hooker rising up NFL Draft boards, two teams emerge to watch

Hendon Hooker has been one of the odd men out when it comes to quarterback evaluation ahead of this year’s NFL Draft. It has been surprising considering there are few knocks on the Tennessee quarterback besides his age and his ability coming off an ACL tear.

However, that narrative is starting to shift, at least according to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler. In an appearance on Get Up this morning, he said there is still plenty of division when it comes to what some teams think Hooker can be at the next level. Even so, some have bought in on him being a viable option in the first or second round.

“This is a prospect that is considered to be climbing up draft boards a little bit. There’s a potential he could go late in the first round,” said Fowler. “Teams are a bit torn on him. Some see him as more of a day-two prospect. A backup that could work his way into, maybe, low-end starter potential. But others say that he’s got the big arm, he’s got the ability.”

There’s no questioning the numbers that Hooker put up in Knoxville in 2022. He went on to throw for 3,125 yards last season. He was ridiculously efficient too as he completed 69.6% of his passes for 27 touchdowns and only two interceptions. You can examine whether or not Josh Heupel’s offense is at the source of that or wonder if he’ll be on the same trajectory after the injury. Still, there were few players last season much better than Hooker.

That’s why, at this point, Fowler is seeing Hooker’s stock start to rise. Later in his analysis, he mentioned two teams that could be intrigued by the Volunteer QB early in the NFL Draft.

“Teams, like Baltimore, are looking late in the first round, potentially, for a quarterback,” Fowler added. “Minnesota is a sleeper. At least they’ve done their homework on a lot of these prospects. (They) could look for an eventual Kirk Cousins replacement.”

We’ll have to wait and see for when things really get going in Kansas City to know just how some teams feel about Hooker and where he is right now. Even so, it’s obvious he’s making an impression considering his recent movement up boards and projections.