AFC team is reportedly 'high' on Tennessee QB Hendon Hooker
An AFC team is reportedly “high” on Tennessee Vols quarterback Hendon Hooker in the 2023 NFL Draft
Projecting where Tennessee Vols quarterback Hendon Hooker will be selected in the 2023 NFL Draft is nearly impossible.
Some analysts feel like Hooker has first-round talent, but they're concerned about the torn ACL that he suffered in Tennessee's loss to South Carolina this past season.
Hooker is expected to be ready for the start of the 2023 season, but until he's on the field this summer and going through workouts, franchises won't truly know whether or not he'll be good to go in September.
Because of the uncertainty with Hooker's knee, he'll probably be selected in the middle rounds of the draft. The second or third round is most likely.
And based on a recent note from The Athletic's Tashan Reed and Vic Tarfur, we know at least one AFC team is "high" on Hooker.
Reed and Tarfur pointed out that the Las Vegas Raiders are interested in the former Vols quarterback.
The Raiders obviously need a quarterback after releasing veteran Derek Carr, but they're not committed to taking a quarterback in the first round.
That's partially because Las Vegas likes the quarterback depth in this draft class, namely Hooker.
They like a few of the quarterbacks projected to be selected in the first round, but they also believe there’s quality depth that extends into Day 2. If they stay put at No. 7 and there isn’t a quarterback still on the board whom they deem worthy, they aren’t going to force the issue. They’re high on Tennessee quarterback Hendon Hooker, for example, who should be available later in the draft.
Landing with the Raiders could be a good scenario for Hooker. He'd have a relatively quick path to the starting job (Vegas will probably sign a journeyman QB to start in 2023 and then hope they hit on a quarterback in the draft) and he'd get to throw passes to Davante Adams and Darren Waller (if he can stay healthy).
Raiders quarterbacks coach Bo Hardegree, by the way, played college football at Tennessee (2004 to 2007). He obviously didn't play with Hooker, but that's still a fun Vol connection nonetheless.
I'm sure plenty of other teams will be interested in Hooker after speaking with him at the combine. The Raiders, however, are definitely a team to watch for Hooker in the 2023 NFL Draft — especially if they don't take a quarterback with the No. 7 overall pick.
