The Green Bay Packers supposedly have their successor in place once Aaron Rodgers is traded, but general manager Brian Gutekunst is still doing his due diligence on at least one quarterback in the 2023 NFL Draft.
Jordan Love is expected to be the starting quarterback next season after Rodgers revealed that he intends to play for the Jets in 2023. However, even after using a first-round pick on Love back in 2020 to be Rodgers’ successor, the Packers aren’t just ignoring this year’s QB prospects.
In fact, ESPN NFL draft analyst Matt Miller tweeted on Tuesday, April 4 that the Packers have scheduled a top 30 visit with former Tennessee Volunteers quarterback Hendon Hooker.
Tennessee quarterback Hendon Hooker met with the Saints today and has the Titans and Packers to close out this week. His schedule is packed pre draft with visits.
Does he go first round? Starting to think so.
The move comes as a bit of a surprise, especially considering that the Packers tend to have a strong connection between the players they bring in for visits and who they end up drafting. Gutekunst also traveled in person to see Hooker and his teammates at Tennessee’s pro day, so there could be legitimate interest in the young quarterback.
However, unless Hooker’s name is officially called during the 2023 draft, Love is still expected to be the starting quarterback for the Packers next season.
Is Jordan Love Ready to Be a Starter?
Given what Packers fans saw last season, there was some optimism about the future for Love. However, the Packers doing this much homework on a QB prospect like Hooker could lead some to question whether or not the 24-year-old has impressed the Packers enough.
Love was taken with the expectation that he would be the successor to Rodgers, but back-to-back MVP seasons from the future Hall of Famer in 2020 and 2021 delayed those plans. In fact, Love has only logged one career star in his first three NFL seasons, struggling in a hostile environment and losing to the Kansas City Chiefs.
The 24-year-old looked much more comfortable in limited action this past season. Replacing an injured Rodgers in Week 12 against the Philadelphia Eagles, Love completed 6 of 9 passes for 113 yards and a touchdown, looking much more confident and throwing with good timing in the structure of the offense.
Love looked ready for an opportunity, and has even considered a trade request if Rodgers returns in 2023. If Rodgers is traded but the Packers take another quarterback, there’s a real possibility that Love will want to find a chance to play somewhere else.
Who Is Hendon Hooker?
It may be a shock to see the Packers meeting with a quarterback, but Hooker might be one of the more intriguing names in this year’s draft class.
Hooker was a 4-star recruit coming out of high school in North Carolina, originally committing to play for Virginia Tech. He played with the Hokies for four seasons before transferring to Tennessee, where he took over as the starter and thrived in Josh Heupel’s offense.
In two seasons with the Volunteers, Hooker went 22-14 as a starter while throwing for 6,080 yards, 58 touchdowns, and just five interceptions. His draft stock was skyrocketing and Hooker was a legitimate Heisman Trophy candidate. until he suffered a torn ACL at the end of the year.
Now, the 25-year-old quarterback is in the middle of the pre-draft process with questions to answer about his age and injury history. Still, given his production with the Volunteers, Hooker could go early in this year’s draft if a team falls in love with him.
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Packers Interested In 25-Year-Old Quarterback: Report