Report: Hendon Hooker wins Detroit Lions backup quarterback job
Hendon Hooker has seemingly won the backup quarterback job for the Detroit Lions. NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport reported Tuesday that the Lions were releasing quarterback Nate Sudfeld in favor of Hooker, the former Tennessee Football star quarterback.
NFL teams had until 4 p.m. Eastern Time Tuesday to reduce active rosters to 53 players.
“Now, it appears it’s Hendon Hooker who has won the job,” Rapoport reported on social media. “Sudfeld has impressed plenty in practice (without a ton of game reps) and will find his way into a practice squad, at least.”
The Lions in May signed starting quarterback Jared Goff to a four-year, $212 million contract that runs through the 2028 season. Hooker is currently on a four-year, $5.7 million rookie contract that runs through the 2026 season.
A closer look at Hendon Hooker’s NFL preseason production
Hooker, a third-round pick by the Lions in the 2023 NFL Draft, finished the preseason 29-for-44 for 300 yards with one touchdown and one interception. He ran 19 times for 138 yards and another score on the ground.
Against the Steelers on Saturday, Hooker completed 12 of 20 passes for 114 yards with a touchdown and an interception and ran 10 times for 93 yards.
He went 12-for-15 for 150 yards in a win in Kansas City two weeks ago, adding five rushes for 11 yards, including his first NFL touchdown on a seven-yard run in the fourth quarter.
Hooker made his debut with the Lions on August 9 against the New York Giants, completing 5 of 9 passes for 36 yards and running four times for 34 yards.
Hooker was sidelined last season while returning from the torn ACL he suffered in November 2022, ending his Tennessee career.
Lions head coach Dan Campbell said after drafting Hooker that his rookie year would be a “redshirt year” while Hooker continued to rehab his torn ACL.
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“He’s got to get this leg right first and then he’ll learn under Jared (Goff),” Campbell said at the time, “and then let’s see what happens. If he can eventually become your (No. 2 quarterback) or maybe down the road, later on, it’s more than that, but it’s going to be a long time.”
Lions drafted Hendon Hooker in third round of 2023 NFL Draft
In 2022 Hooker threw for 3,135 yards, 27 touchdowns and two interceptions, completing 69.6 percent of his passes, in 11 games before suffering the season-ending injury. He passed for 2,945 yards with 31 touchdowns and three interceptions in 2021.
He transferred to Tennessee after two years at Virginia Tech, where he passed for 2,894 yards, with 22 touchdowns and seven interceptions.
Hooker was the fifth quarterback taken in the 2023 NFL Draft, selected by the Lions in the third round at No. 68 overall. Campbell said after minicamp in June that Hooker would have to “take another step up” to earn the backup quarterback spot.
“We need to feel like by the end of [training] camp this guy can run this offense,” Campbell said. “He’s somebody that we know we can play the game a certain way. We know he’s going to be able to process the information. He’s going to get us in the right play and he’s going to keep the ship afloat. That’s it.”
“We don’t need him to come in and win a game,” Campbell said. “You just want to feel like, ‘all right.’ So obviously, he’s going to need to take another step up.”
