The Detroit Lions wrapped up their OTA workouts last week and are now focused on training camp ahead of the 2025 season. While most teams still have a mandatory minicamp this week, the Lions have opted to skip it this year as they’ll face the Los Angeles Chargers in the Hall of Fame Game on July 31, making this the time of year where they make their final evaluation of training camp rosters.
One Lions quarterback entered OTAs with his name being floated in trade rumors. But while he received an opportunity to prove himself, he couldn’t do enough to take himself off the block. It sets up for an interesting training camp and potentially a surprising trade as Detroit gets ready for the new year.
Hendon Hooker Couldn’t Get Off the Trade Block Following Lions OTAs
The Lions OTA workouts were a pivotal point in the career of Hendon Hooker. A third-round pick by the Lions in the 2023 draft, Hooker was expected to develop into the backup quarterback role behind Jared Goff but was hampered during his rookie season after tearing his ACL in his final year with the Tennessee Volunteers.
Hooker essentially had his first professional year in 2024 and it was a bumpy ride. Although he appeared in three games, he completed 6-of-9 passes for 62 scoreless yards in garbage time. To make matters worse, the Lions signed Teddy Bridgewater, who spent most of the year coaching high school football, as their backup for their playoff run and it was Bridgewater who got the snaps when Goff momentarily left Detroit’s divisional round loss to the Washington Commanders.
It created an uncertain offseason for Hooker that was amplified by the Lions decision to bring in Kyle Allen. While general manager Brad Holmes admitted they still like Hooker, he also declared that it was time for him to win the backup job.
“He had that injury that first year, then last year that was the first year he was able to do a full year of training camp and during the season,” Holmes said at the NFL Owner Meetings back in March. “And then we brought Teddy Bridgewater in just because we were gearing up for the playoffs and postseason and he just wasn’t ready yet, you know? And he understood that.”
Lions quarterback coach Mark Brunell gave an encouraging report on Hooker during OTAs and suggested he still has room to grow. But Hooker’s development arc isn’t typical of a young player.
Hooker played himself onto the NFL radar by throwing for 6,080 yards, 58 touchdowns and five interceptions over two years at Tennessee. But a career that was aided by an extra year of eligibility and he entered the league at age 25. Now 27, Hooker has to prove his worth as the team in training camp. If he doesn’t it could be a rare failed draft pick by the Holmes regime and leave Hooker looking for another opportunity.