Life in the NFL has been a tough draw for former Detroit Lions quarterback Hendon Hooker. Hooker originally slid to the third round and spent his entire rookie campiagn rehabbing from a torn ACL suffered in his final collegiate season.
While he returned to health the following year, Hooker could never get in the good graces of Dan Campbell’s staff and was released following the team’s training camp ahead of the 2025 season.
After spending the year on the Carolina Panthers practice squad, Hooker thought he found a better opportunity after signing with the New York Jets’ practice squad in December and earned a futures deal with New York earlier this week.
But according to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, that may have been another dead end as the Jets signed veteran Bailey Zappe to a futures deal on Wednesday morning.
Zappe’s arrival could be another bad hand for Hooker as he looks to stick on an NFL roster and what appeared to be a dream scenario could already be crashing down in front of him.
Hendon Hooker Is Running Out of Chances After Jets Sign Bailey Zappe to Futures Deal
The Jets appeared to be a great landing spot for Hooker to begin the offseason. New York is likely to move on from Justin Fields after he failed to bring value on the first year of a two-year, $40 million free agent contract as the team’s starter and there’s no immediate competition on the roster with Brady Cook signed to a futures deal and Tyrod Taylor set to enter free agency.
While the Jets could take another swing at finding a franchise signal caller in this year’s draft, the backup situation is wide open. If Hooker had a strong camp, he could find his way into that role -- but it now seems like Zappe is the front runner.
Unlike Hooker, Zappe has not only been able to stick on an active roster during his stops with the New England Patriots and Cleveland Browns, he’s also been trusted to start nine games since entering the league in 2022. The success in those games hasn’t been great with a 4-5 record as a starter, but he’s shown that he can do it in an emergency situation.
Meanwhile, Hooker has been a traffic cone when it comes to impeding other quarterbacks’ opportunities. Teddy Bridgewater came out of retirement late in the 2024 season to overtake Hooker in the backup role.
Hooker also couldn’t beat out Kyle Allen in this year’s training camp for the job before being released. After signing with Carolina’s practice squad, Hooker was passed over by journeyman Mike White and was released for the second time in November as well.
After three seasons, Hooker has appeared in just three games and it appears that he’s not going to make a fourth anytime soon. With a proven option like Zappe in the fold and the possibility of the Jets adding a quarterback this offseason, Hooker is already buried on the depth chart in New York and may be running out of chances to stick in the league.