Lions Not Yet Ready to Name Official Backup Quarterback

Lions have two backups that have different traits.

Detroit Lions quarterbacks Nate Sudfeld, Jared Goff and Hendon Hooker / Eric Seals / USA TODAY NETWORK

After the conclusion of the preseason, the Detroit Lions are not yet ready to officially declare who their backup quarterback will be behind Jared Goff.

The contestants, Nate Sudfeld and Hendon Hooker, both got the chance to play significant reps in the preseason. Hooker showed off dynamic ability with his legs, while Sudfeld has the trust of the staff, given his experience with the system.

"It's hard to answer that because there again, they both bring something different, you know, and you could easily say one of them gets you out of the game and another one is the one that starts for you if something happened the next week and you know," Lions head coach Dan Campbell said about the backup quarterback competition. "So, I mean, you're going to use all those guys, I guess is the best way to say it."

For the fourth-year head coach, it is difficult to label Hooker, the second-year quarterback, as the backup, as he is viewing the player from the perspective of growth.

"They've all shown something a little bit different," Campbell said. "I mean, let's start with Hooker. You want to know, plain and simple, it's hard for me to just jump right in and say, 'Man, he's, you feel great at number two.' I think of him as, is he growing? That's where my mind goes first. Is he growing? Is he developing? Yes, he is. He got better, all right, because he got reps. That's good.

"Nate, for the most part, has done what we've asked him to do. There's a couple of decisions here and there, but we know what he is. He's been around the system now going on three years."

The NFL recently announced that a rule involving emergency third quarterbacks has been vetoed, likely increasing the odds that Sudfeld remains on the Lions' roster.

According to the NFL Network, "NFL teams were informed that the NFLPA vetoed the revised Emergency 3rd Quarterback rule that would have allowed teams to elevate a bona fide QB from the practice squad an unlimited number of times."

The Lions proposed the potential rule change, but unfortunately were not able to get it passed. As a result, the rule remains that states the emergency third quarterback must be on the 53-man roster, and not be an elevation.