In the week and a half following the 2023 NFL Draft in Kansas City, many analysts from the college and professional football worlds have been raving about two draft picks from the University of Tennessee.
Former Tennessee offensive lineman Darnell Wright went to the Chicago Bears with the 10th overall pick in the draft. The Bears needed to ensure more stable protection for quarterback Justin Fields, and Chicago found the right pick with Wright.
There’s no one more important than quarterback Justin Fields in the Bears’ organization. And while Fields is uber-talented on the football field, the mobile quarterback ran the ball 160 times during the 2022 season, which was the second most among quarterbacks and only five attempts behind Eagles’ QB Jalen Hurts at the top of the chart. The third-most quarterback, Buffalo’s Josh Allen, was all the way back at 124 attempts. Securing protection for the next decade in the league could go a long way in helping the health of the Bears’ quarterback.
Darnell Wright proved to be one of the best tackles in college football last year, and he ended up as one ESPN analyst’s favorite pick from the entire draft.
“Offensive tackle Darnell Wright to the Chicago Bears at No. 10,” said ESPN’s Eric Moody about his favorite selection from the 2023 draft. “This pick filled a huge hole along the offensive line for a Bears team that allowed the fourth-most sacks last year (58). Wright is a plug-and-play starter for Chicago and has a physicality unmatched by any other offensive linemen selected in the first round.”
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Another play that has the attention of the football world after the draft is former Tennessee quarterback Hendon Hooker.
Seth Walder, an analytics writer for ESPN, has Hooker as his favorite selection in the draft.
“Quarterback Hendon Hooker to the Detroit Lions at No. 68,” Walder wrote. “Questions about Hooker’s age, recovery from a torn ACL and transition from that Tennessee offense to the pros are all fair. But in the third round, it’s a tolerable risk for Detroit to take for the potential upside of a quarterback who ranked No. 1 in QBR last season. He also won’t be rushed onto the field with Jared Goff in line to be the starter.”
Jared Goff still has two more years remaining on his contract in Detroit as Hooker continues to settle into professional football and recover from his knee injury this past November.
While Hooker may be left watching and learning for his first two years in the league, former superstar Robert Griffin III said that’s actually the best thing for the young quarterback – and something he wish he could’ve had himself.
“This is a situation where there is zero pressure on Hendon Hooker to go out and play early,” Griffin recently said. “As a guy who has been through a couple of knee injuries, I should have sat out for a year after my rookie season. So I’m happy that Hendon – when we asked him the question and what he expects, he said, ‘Hey, I get to heal.’ That’s the most important thing. And then he gets to grow with some young playmakers like Jahmyr Gibbs, Jameson Williams, Amon-Ra St. Brown, and he gets to learn from veterans like Marvin Jones Jr. and Jared Goff.”
Despite having a total of 10 Bulldogs drafted with two day-two selections, former Georgia All-American and current ESPN College GameDay Host David Pollack also has the former Tennessee quarterback as his favorite pick from the second day of the draft.
