NFL Draft 2023 Rumors: Hendon Hooker Visiting Saints After Derek Carr's Contract

The New Orleans Saints addressed the quarterback position this offseason with the addition of Derek Carr, but they could be in the market for a backup on draft day.

To that end, NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported Tennessee signal-caller Hendon Hooker is scheduled to meet with the NFC South team on Tuesday. The Saints have the No. 29 selection, and Hooker could be available after some of the other draft's quarterbacks are already taken.

Hooker was a Heisman Trophy contender for the Volunteers last season before he suffered a torn ACL during a November loss to South Carolina.

He finished the year completing 69.6 percent of his passes for 3,135 yards, 27 touchdowns and two interceptions while adding 430 yards and five scores on the ground. He was at his best during a season-defining win over Alabama in which he threw for five touchdowns in one of the year's most memorable games.

Yet the injury and the presence of so many other top quarterbacks in this year's draft means he may not go in the first round.

Ohio State's C.J. Stroud, Alabama's Bryce Young, Florida's Anthony Richardson and Kentucky's Will Levis are all potential early picks, and B/R's NFL Scouting Department did not project the Tennessee signal-caller to go in the first round in its latest mock draft.

Don't rule out the Saints, though. They could see Hendon as a long-term option who could learn under Carr while the veteran is under contract through the next four seasons with a potential out after the third one.

Carr is more than just a bridge quarterback as a four-time Pro Bowler, but he is also 32 years old and may not be New Orleans' answer for the next decade or so. If the team likes what it sees in Hooker, it could jump at the chance to secure the position for the foreseeable future and address other spots with its later picks and in upcoming years.