Former Vols QB Hendon Hooker reveals his post-NFL career plans
Former Tennessee Vols quarterback Hendon Hooker, a third-round selection by the Detroit Lions in the 2023 NFL Draft, is hoping to have a long NFL career. The 2022 SEC offensive player of the year is currently rehabbing from the torn ACL he suffered last November. As a result, he's not expected to make a big […]
Former Tennessee Vols quarterback Hendon Hooker, a third-round selection by the Detroit Lions in the 2023 NFL Draft, is hoping to have a long NFL career.
The 2022 SEC offensive player of the year is currently rehabbing from the torn ACL he suffered last November. As a result, he's not expected to make a big impact for the Lions as a rookie in 2023.
But entering the 2024 season, Hooker should have a chance to compete for the starting job in Detroit.
Hooker's floor in the NFL is as a high-level backup, though he has his sights set on becoming a Hall-of-Fame caliber quarterback that wins multiple Super Bowls.
Regardless of whether Hooker is a future Hall of Famer or a 10-year backup, the point is that he should be a fixture in the NFL in some form or fashion for the next decade.
And after his playing days are over, Hooker still plans to remain involved in football.
Late last month, Peyton Manning's "Omaha Productions" put out a Mic'd up video of Hooker at last year's Manning Passing Academy. In the video, Hooker says that he wants to be a coach one day.
"Well, I want to be a coach one day," said Hooker in the video. "So watching kids develop, you know just giving them advice and helping them learn through things is exciting to see. So just seeing that growth from day one to day three in the guys I had in my group was amazing."
Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel loves hiring his former players as coaches.
In a perfect world for Vols fans, Hooker has a long NFL career that ends with a Super Bowl ring or two and then he returns to Tennessee where Heupel is enjoying a Nick Saban-like run of success and Hooker joins the staff as an assistant coach.
That sounds like a fairy tale, but after Tennessee's incredible 11-2 season last year, Vols fans might as well ask "Why not us?".
Kirthmon F. Dozier / USA TODAY NETWORK
