It’s often said that tight ends have one of the biggest jumps to make from college to the pros and that their second season can be a better signal of how their NFL career will unfold.
The Lions hope that’s the case for T.J. Hockenson. The 2019 first-round pick had 32 catches for 367 yards and two touchdowns in 12 games as a rookie, but jumped up to 67 catches for 723 yards and six touchdowns during the 2020 season.
New offensive coordinator Anthony Lynn’s Chargers teams made good use of Hunter Henry and he said on Wednesday that he thinks Hockenson is still scratching the surface of what he can do for an offense.
“T.J. did some nice things last year and I think his ceiling is even higher,” Lynn said, via Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com. “I know he made the Pro Bowl and all that, but he can play even better and that was the encouraging part. I like what I saw on tape.”
Wide receivers Kenny Golladay, Marvin Jones, Danny Amendola, and Mohamed Sanu are all set for free agency, so there’s a lot up in the air about how the Lions’ passing offense will look. However things shake out at wideout, it seems Hockenson is set for a big role in 2021.