A year after suffering a serious knee injury in his final college game at Tennessee, Lions rookie quarterback is finally on the practice field this week. Lions head coach Dan Campbell says it was worth the wait.
Campbell said today that he likes what he’s seeing from Hooker and is excited about his potential.
“It’s good to get him out there,” Campbell said of Hooker. “I know he’s excited to feel like he’s now part of the team. From his perspective, it’s hard when you’re limited to, ‘I’m in meetings and that’s about it, then I go and rehab.’ So I know he’s excited to be out there, and we’re just in the beginning stages of it. You can see, just when he throws the ball, why we acquired him. He’s got a poise about him and he’s got a really smooth delivery. Tight spiral. But he’s just starting. He’s just starting. It’s good to get him out there.”
Hooker is highly unlikely to play this season, as Jared Goff will continue to start and Teddy Bridgewater would replace Goff in case of an injury. But the Lions believe Hooker has potential, and they’ll evaluate him in practice late this season before deciding whether to potentially make him the third quarterback for the end of the season.