The Detroit Lions might have an uncertain future to some, but that doesn’t change the fact that they still have a bright future on the field in plenty of ways.
While the Lions have several notable roster holes that every fan knows about, they are also stacked at a few spots where the team could theoretically have some top talents in the league. On the offensive side of the ball, quietly, Detroit might have one of the league’s best breakout stars in the form of tight end T.J. Hockenson.
According to Pro Football Focus, Hockenson is trending to become the next elite tight end in the NFL, and have a major breakout season come 2021. The site recently made this bold prediction for the future.
T.J. Hockenson will be the next elite tight end 🤖🚀
Hockenson’s solid play culminated in a Pro Bowl invite, and it’s possible that might only be the beginning for the tight end in terms of his future. Hockenson trained with George Kittle this past offseason, and it’s possible that the tight end taught him plenty tricks of the trade in terms of getting to the next level.
Come next season, the Lions could have their hands on one of the best young players in the league moving forward for Dan Campbell, a former tight end himself, to groom.
T.J. Hockenson Keeping Elite NFL Company
As Pro Football Focus pointed out a few months back, Hockenson is well on his way and is starting to be thought of as one of the bigger names in the league at the position with his play this year. It was a solid season which finished strong for Hockenson, and PFF was all-eyes in terms of the company he was keeping during the end half of last season.
Late during the 2020 season, Hockenson certainly stepped up his game. Joining with Kittle and Travis Kelce isn’t easy to do as a young player, but Hockenson was able to get into the mix with these players given how well he had been playing late last season. This might only be another reason he is set to take off in 2021 and formally join these players.
By matching his play and getting some quality comparisons along the way, the news looks good for Hockenson moving forward.
T.J. Hockenson Stats
There is simply no understating the importance of Hockenson to the Lions in the future moving forward in 2021 and beyond. The team hasn’t gotten much of anything from any of the other tight ends on their roster, and while he hasn’t had the most dramatic statistical impact thus far in his career, Hockenson has easily been one of the team’s top rookies in 2019 and 2020 and a player capable of impacting both the run and the passing games.
During the season last year, many fans were upset with Hockenson for not making a bigger impact on the game. He had only 367 yards and 2 touchdowns on the year which is not the statistical impact that many people expected from him as a top 10 selection for the team. 2020 was a major bounce back from that, though, and Hockenson put up 723 yards and 6 touchdowns.
Clearly, Hockenson is on the right track to being thought of as one of the best players in the league at his position.
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Lions Pro Bowler Identified as NFL’s Next Breakout Star