When the Detroit Lions selected TE T.J. Hockenson with the number eight overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft, the hope was that he would come in and immediately become a perennial Pro Bowl player. Though Hockenson did make the Pro Bowl in his second season in the league after catching 67 passes for 723 yards and six touchdowns, he has certainly left much to be desired out of a top-10 pick and there have been rumors that he could be traded prior to the November 1 NFL trade deadline. On Thursday, Hockenson weighed in on those trade rumors.
What did T.J. Hockenson say about the rumors that he could be traded by Detroit Lions?
On Thursday, Hockenson told Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press that he deleted all of the social media apps from his phone about a month ago, and he did not know about any of the trade rumors floating around until one of his friends told him.
“It’s just like, ‘Hey’d you hear I’m getting traded?'” Hockenson told the Free Press on Thursday. “It’s more me laughing about it than anything. I mean, if that — like I said, I love everybody in this locker room, I love being here in Detroit. I mean, but more importantly and most importantly I love playing football and so I’m going to have the opportunity to do that and that’s really what my whole role in this entire league is to do is to play football. So as long as I have that opportunity I’m good.”
Via Dave Birkett – Detroit Free Press
Hockenson said that his fellow Lions’ tight ends in the locker room laughed at the trade rumors because they know it is not happening.
Hockenson said his fellow tight ends laughed at his quip Thursday “cause they know nothing is (happening),” and he insisted the trade rumors are “not (coming from) the building because I know that’s not how it is.”
The Lions have not fielded any calls so far on Hockenson
Birkett added that as of Friday, the Detroit Lions had not yet fielded any calls regarding a trade for T.J. Hockenson.
Though Hockenson does not believe he will be traded to another team, he does understand that the NFL is a business.
“Listen, I’m not stupid, I know what I can bring to another team and I know here that they could, if they want something, if they want to do things for the future then I’m not stupid in that sense,” Hockenson said. “It is a business and whatever they have to do upstairs they’re going to do. And that doesn’t — there’s no hard feelings about it. There’s no, ‘Hey, I don’t like him personally’ or anything about that. That’s just how it is. So I’m not dumb or naïve in that fact.”
Nation, do you think the Detroit Lions should trade T.J. Hockenson if a solid offer is on the table?
