NBC Sports’ Cris Collinsworth and Titans coach Brian Callahan see the same red flags with QBs in the Tennessee Vols’ offense

NBC Sports announcer Cris Collinsworth suggested on Thursday night during the Hall of Fame game between the Detroit Lions and the Los Angeles Chargers that former Tennessee Vols quarterback Hendon Hooker is having to learn how to anticipate throws in the NFL because of the offensive system he played in at UT. Hooker, who is […]

Zach Ragan — Tennessee Volunteers News Writer
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NBC Sports announcer Cris Collinsworth suggested on Thursday night during the Hall of Fame game between the Detroit Lions and the Los Angeles Chargers that former Tennessee Vols quarterback Hendon Hooker is having to learn how to anticipate throws in the NFL because of the offensive system he played in at UT.

Hooker, who is entering his third season with the Lions, is battling Kyle Allen in training camp for the backup quarterback job in Detroit.

“That’s the kind of throw right there that you see out of Jared Goff all the time — those on-time, anticipative throws,” said Collinsworth in the second half. “And that’s the advantage that Kyle Allen is going to have over Hendon Hooker, who was much more — at the University of Tennessee, they would spread everything out and he would actually keep his eyes on the receiver, see if they’re open and then deliver it when he saw it. And now he’s having to learn this anticipation type of offense.”

Collinsworth’s comments during the Lions vs Chargers game are similar to what Titans head coach Brian Callahan had to say earlier this spring while discussing college quarterbacks during a live taping of The Install.

“There’s just a different style of play [in the NFL],” explained Callahan. “In the NFL, I guess the best way to put it as we start talking ball, is a lot of times in the NFL, you have to throw the ball before guys are anywhere near the spot, or you don’t even know if he’s open. Because most of the time, you’re throwing to spots, you’re anticipating windows. And in college football, it’s a lot more of seeing guys come open. That’s probably the best way I can describe it. As you see a receiver running into a zone, then they go (and make the pass). Whereas in the NFL, you better go long before that spot (comes open) or the ball is going to get picked. That’s probably the biggest difference, and it’s hard to see.”

“I would say the average person just watching college football would never be able to understand that (difference in predetermination and anticipation) just with the naked eye,” continued Callahan. “Just watching, it would be really hard to understand. Because there is definitely that element in college where the offenses are so much different. Especially when you talk about, for example, Tennessee, right? The University of Tennessee. That’s spread out, that system. And so sometimes those are, as you say, predetermined (throws). The ball’s going here no matter what. It looks like they’re doing it quickly, [but] they may not really be seeing anything of any substance.” 

Vols fans — and probably Tennessee head coach Josh Heupel — likely won’t appreciate those comments about UT’s quarterbacks. But when Collinsworth, a three-time Pro Bowler during his playing days, and Callahan, who has coached Joe Burrow, Peyton Manning, and Matthew Stafford, are making those comments, there’s probably something to it.

Ultimately, a quarterback is either talented enough to thrive in the NFL or they’re not. If Burrow, for example, had played in a system like Tennessee’s, I think he’d still be one of the top two or three quarterbacks in the NFL (it’s in his DNA). The problem is that Tennessee’s system is so different from what NFL teams run that quarterbacks coming from it face a steeper learning curve when they turn pro. That doesn’t mean they can’t be successful at the next level — it just likely means it’ll take more time for them to make an impact.

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