The Detroit Lions had their latest round in the fight for the backup quarterback spot between Hendon Hooker and Nate Sudfeld on Saturday afternoon during the preseason Week 2 game against the Kansas City Chiefs.
After a solid showing in his preseason debut last week, Hooker looked even better in his second exhibition game. The Tennessee product completed 12-of-15 passes for 150 yards and added five carries for 11 yards and a touchdown.
After throwing incompletions on his first two passes, Hooker went 12-for-13 the rest of the way. He entered the game in the second half and had five drives, with three of them leading to points for Detroit (one touchdown, two field goals).
Hooker didn't just put up the numbers, he passed the eye test, also. Hooker looked poised in the pocket, went through his progressions and delivered the football accurately on his throws.
He did have a blemish, however, as a sloppy handoff on his second-to-last drive of the game led to a fumble that Kansas City recovered. That said, the snap on the play was high, so that certainly played a part, and he quickly made up for it by leading Detroit on a game-winning drive.
When you consider this was just his second chance at NFL game action, it only makes his showing even more impressive.
Hendon Hooker stats vs. Chiefs
| Stat | Total |
| Comp/Attempt (%) | 12/15 (80%) |
| Passing yards | 150 |
| Passing TDs | 0 |
| Interceptions | 0 |
| Fumbles (Lost) | 1 |
| Yards/attempt | 10 |
| Passer rating | 108.3 |
| Rushing attempts | 5 |
| Rushing yards | 11 |
| Rushing TDs | 1 |
| Yards/attempt | 2.2 |
After his first drive resulted in a punt, Hooker led the Lions on a 14-play, 75-yard series that ended with a field goal. He then put together a touchdown drive of seven plays for 70 yards that ended with Hooker running it in from seven yards out, which was his first touchdown of the preseason.
Following his fourth drive that ended with the aforementioned fumble, Hooker had an opportunity to win the game on the final series of the contest, and he delivered. After a big punt return from Isaiah Williams, Hooker drove the Lions into field goal range, where kicker Jake Bates took care of the rest.
As for Sudfeld, he completed 14-of-27 passes for 196 yards and one touchdown to one interception. The veteran had a better showing than last week, but he wasn't as impressive as Hooker once again. His interception was a terrible decision and was the second one he's tossed in as many weeks. Sudfeld's big play of the game came on a 64-yard strike to wide receiver Kaden Davis.
There was once again a clear difference between the two quarterbacks, and Hooker came out looking like the better one by a sizeable amount. If he wasn't already, Hooker is now in the lead for the backup job behind Jared Goff.
