NFL coach has strong take on Hendon Hooker and Will Levis in 2023 NFL Draft
An NFL quarterbacks coach had a strong take this week on Tennessee QB Hendon Hooker and Kentucky QB Will Levis
Tennessee Vols quarterback Hendon Hooker's draft stock has improved over the last couple of weeks despite him not being able to work out in front of scouts due to his torn ACL.
Hooker is expected to be ready for the regular season, but the ACL injury he suffered in the Vols' penultimate game of the regular season kept him from participating in on-field workouts at the Senior Bowl and NFL Draft combine.
Coaches and front office execs, however, have been thoroughly impressed with Hooker during interviews and media sessions.
One anonymous NFL quarterbacks coach has been impressed enough by Hooker that he's "trending to overtake Will Levis" in his rankings.
“Hendon was great," said the anonymous QB coach to The Athletic's Bruce Feldman. "He is trending to overtake Will Levis on my rankings. Will is more talented as far as arm strength and size, but I think Hendon might run faster, he’s more nimble and has more throws in his arm. He was so mature. He remembered both offenses, from Tennessee and from Virginia Tech, in such detail. He talked about the route depths and the reasonings behind certain things. He was very even keel. I would be shocked if he doesn’t make it in some capacity."
Levis is being projected as a top 10 selection in the 2023 NFL Draft by numerous analysts (some even have him going in the top five).
I don't get that projection at all. Sure, Levis has great size and arm strength, but he's extremely turnover prone (he threw an interception every 29 attempts in college while Hooker threw an interception every 79 attempts).
Levis also tends to display bad body language when things don't go his way.
Hooker just seems to have that "it factor" that takes a quarterback's play to the next level. He showed that "it factor" in Tennessee's win against Alabama this past season. Hooker was great all afternoon against the Crimson Tide, but the drive with 15 seconds to go to get the Vols in field goal range to win the game was a special moment that not many quarterbacks could've provided.
I know Hooker has some questions to answer about the knee injury, but I wouldn't bet against him excelling in the NFL.
It sounds like folks in the NFL are starting to feel the same way.
