Hendon Hooker Discusses Criticisms of Tennessee's Offense

NFL evaluators are critical of Tennessee's offense, saying it relies on easy reads and doesn't prepare quarterbacks. Hendon Hooker had some choice words about their skepticism.

Evaluating quarterbacks is the most difficult thing to do as a scout. Every other position has a few check boxes that high-level players tend to meet; strong combine performances, age, and college tape are critical factors.

There is no rhyme or reason why certain NFL quarterbacks succeed, and others don't. Scouts thought Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes II played too loose and didn't have the mechanics to become a starter; he's won two Super Bowl MVPs and two regular season MVPs in his first five seasons as a starter.

Each season it feels like we have an unexpected starter make noise. San Francisco 49ers rookie quarterback Brock Purdy started the NFC Championship game after several injuries thrust him into the limelight. He was "Mr. Irrelevant" in the draft, pick No. 262. No one imagined he would reach the sport's apex in his first season, yet there he was.

All that to say, evaluators are still searching for ways to identify top quarterback talent correctly. One of the key talking points is whether their college offense was "pro-style," which entails full-field reads, leading a huddle, and controlling the play pre-snap.

Tennessee runs a pace-and-space offense that emphasizes getting the ball to playmakers in the open field. Some critique the scheme and say it isn't preparing quarterbacks for the professional level, and their criticism falls on quarterback Hendon Hooker's shoulders.

Hooker took the podium at the NFL Combine to address the media and spoke about the perceived offensive limitations. He shrugged the question off and retorted, "it's not my fault nobody could cover my receivers." Hooker talked about his style, explaining, "those are all grown man throws. I'm not throwing any five-yard outs. I'm throwing big boy balls."

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