Photo: Cameron Faulkner
An NFL insider believes the Minnesota Vikings are "exactly" the right draft situation for former Tennessee Volunteers quarterback Hendon Hooker.
Eisen addressed Hooker's rising draft stock after his guest, NFL Network's Bucky Brooks, ranked the 25-year-old as the No. 3 quarterback prospect in next week's 2023 NFL Draft and acknowledged that the Vikings' situation with veteran starter Kirk Cousins under contract for one more season would provide the perfect timetable for Hooker to successfully recover from knee surgery.
"I guess ACLs are ACLs [but] if you're a team that doesn't need him now, the Vikings are exactly that team," Eisen said on Thursday (April 20).
NFL.com's Daniel Jeremiah has the Vikings taking Hooker at No. 24 overall in his mock draft released on March 21.
"The Vikings have been doing their homework on this quarterback class. Hooker is well-liked around the league and he could sit for a year behind Kirk Cousins before taking over and ushering in a new era for Kevin O’Connell," Jeremiah wrote.
Hooker led the Vols to a 9-2 record in 11 games before suffering a torn ACL during Tennessee's loss to South Carolina on November 19, 2022. The redshirt senior is also 25 year old, making him one of the oldest players eligible for this year's draft, having spent four years at Virginia Tech before transferring to Tennessee in 2021.
Hooker was, however, one of college football's best quarterbacks prior to his injury, still finishing fourth in passing yards (3,135) and third in touchdowns (27) among all SEC quarterbacks, despite missing his final two games. The North Carolina native also helped lead Tennessee to its best season in decades, finishing at No. 6 overall in the final Associated Press poll and topping the initial College Football Playoff Top 25 prior to its first loss of the season.
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