Every week in “4-Down Territory,” Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar and Luke Easterling of Bucs Wire and Draft Wire go over the things you need to know about, and the things you need to watch, in the NFL right now. It’s all about draft prospects with the scouting combine getting started this week, so Doug and Luke get into a bunch of questions about all the draft prospects looking to raise their games in Indianapolis — both on the field at Lucas Oil Stadium, and in private interviews with NFL teams.
Which prospects need the medicals to work their way to cement their standing in this class based on their tape?
Doug: Georgia edge-rusher Nolan Smith comes to mind, but I have to go with Tennessee quarterback Hendon Hooker. Before Hooker suffered a torn ACL in November, he was my QB3 in this class behind Bryce Young and C.J. Stroud. Nothing has moved for me in that regard as long as Hooker is well on his way to recovery. You will wonder if Hooker can run as well post-injury as mobility is a big part of his game, but ACL recoveries aren’t what they used to be, in a good way.
If Hooker checks out medically, I think he’s a second-round pick, and has a bright future as a potential franchise quarterback. As far as the “he benefited from the spread offense” stuff, that’s true to a point, but a lot of NFL teams look to spread defenses out as well, and Hooker does enough with tight-window throws and throwing receivers open to make me think it won’t be a huge problem over time.
Luke: Yeah, you nailed it. I agree with everything you said about Hooker, and the fact that he’ll be a 25-year-old rookie puts even more pressure on him to check out medically if he wants to be drafted early. Before his injury, Smith was looking like a dominant force for the Bulldogs. If he checks out, he could easily put himself back in the first-round conversation, even in a deep class of edge defenders.
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