4 Things T.J. Hockenson Must Improve Upon in 2022

Despite being named to the Pro Bowl in 2020, as well as being selected a Pro Bowl alternate in 2021, there is room for improvement for Lions tight end T.J. Hockenson.

In fact, there is room for improvement with every player, until they are in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Lions head coach Dan Campbell’s mentor Bill Parcells had a favorite saying along those lines.

“You’re either getting better, or you’re getting worse. But, nobody stays the same," Parcells said.

Pro football is very unforgiving, and there is never a good time to feel comfortable. Every season there is turnover on the roster, and periodically, new coaching and front-office regimes come in and want to build the team with “their guys.”

Hockenson was not drafted by Campbell or Detroit general manager Brad Holmes. However, Hockenson fit in when the two took over in 2021, once again posting solid numbers. This past season, Hockenson was the team’s second-leading receiver, with 61 receptions (on 84 targets) for 583 yards and four touchdowns.

People in the game desire to work with “those who they are familiar with" and players they hand-pick.

There are younger players coming in through the draft, and there is the potential for free-agent signings that can push out players currently on the roster.

A star like Hockenson does not need to worry about that as much, but his injuries are somewhat concerning.

Hockenson has only played one complete season (2020).

He missed four games on injured reserve, with an ankle injury, in 2019, and he found himself again on injured reserve this past season with a thumb injury.

It does not take long in the NFL for a player to develop a reputation for being injury-plagued. While that is not the word on the street yet about Hockenson, who is entering the last year of his contract, there have been rumors that Hockenson could be traded.

The combination of not being one of the current regime’s “guys” and the injuries open this up for debate.

Not to mention, the average NFL playing career lasts 3.3 years.

With all that said, no matter where Hockenson plays in 2022, there are four things he needs to improve upon, based on my game film study.

1.) Needs to create more separation on routes

Time and time again, in the three games I scouted -- vs. BAL (9/26), against MIN (10/10) and at PIT (11/14) -- Hockenson was mostly tied up in tight coverage. He was not creating enough separation on routes.

Hockenson would have had a challenging time making catches, had the ball been thrown to him more.

2.) Run routes with more urgency

It was surprising (and disappointing) to see how sluggish Hockenson looked running routes. His routes did not look crisp. It appeared he was mostly going through the motions.

He only caught a total of four passes (on six targets) in these three games, and it was easy to see why.

There were two reps where he took off and ran his routes at full speed, illuminating what he was capable of vs. what he showed the rest of the time.

3.) More YAC

YAC is short for “yards after the catch,” and not only was Hockenson light on receptions in this film study, but his YAC production was nearly non-existent.

To his defense, Hockenson looked like he was fighting to pick up additional yardage after catches. However, because he did such a poor job creating separation in these situations, he was tackled almost immediately.

4.) Become more consistent as a run blocker

To Hockenson’s credit, he gives a solid effort when asked to run block (which was often).

The issue is that he has always been known more as a receiving tight end, who gives it his all blocking.

Said another way, he lacks the necessary physical strength to consistently get the job done. He is more of a leverage positional blocker that tries to hold the point.

It would not hurt if Hockenson hit the weights in the offseason and became more consistent blocking.

Remember, in football, every yard counts, whether you have the ball or not.

Add us as a preferred source on Google