Tennessee Vols quarterback Hendon Hooker is one of the most intriguing prospects in the 2023 NFL Draft. 

Hooker has ideal size and a good arm to go along with impressive college production. But he's not receiving the same pre-draft hype as guys like Will Levis or Anthony Richardson. 

Part of that is because of the torn ACL Hooker suffered last November in Tennessee's loss to South Carolina. 

Hooker has maintained that he'll be ready for training camp, but the injury is still a concern for NFL teams. 

Before the ACL was an issue, Hooker still wasn't in that group with Levis and Richardson. And that's mostly because he was getting dinged for the offense he played in at Tennessee. 

Some analysts have suggested that Hooker won't be able to handle an NFL offense because of the Vols' nontraditional up-tempo offense. The Vols didn't use a traditional playbook, something that will be different for Hooker in the NFL. 

NFL Network draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah, a former NFL scout, put the playbook concerns with Hooker to bed this week via one sentence. 

Jeremiah suggested that Hooker could be a good fit with Josh McDaniels and the Las Vegas Raiders because of his football acumen. 

“He is going to be able to pick it up and handle a large playbook there (Vegas),” said Jeremiah (via The Athletic). 

According to The Athletic, Hooker has been asked to do a lot of board work to alleviate some of those concerns: 

Hooker was asked to do a lot of board work, drawing up plays. NFL teams have no idea what he can handle on the next level, as Tennessee only ran a handful of plays out of the spread, though obviously very well. Hooker showed poise, pocket presence, good arm strength and the ability to run for first downs and would have been a first-round pick if not for the injury.

It's important for Tennessee that Hooker is selected in the first couple of rounds of the draft and has a successful NFL career. The idea that Josh Heupel's offense doesn't prepare quarterbacks for the NFL is the only negative recruiting pitch that other programs can use against the Vols when it comes to recruiting high-level quarterbacks. 

If Hooker finds success in the NFL, it would destroy that piece of recruiting ammo for opposing programs. 

The more teams talk to Hooker in person, the more their concerns disappear. I wouldn't be surprised if Hooker is selected in the second round by a team that could use an answer at quarterback but doesn't have a top-five pick.