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TE Austin Hooper, LV (1 Viewer)

Run It Up

Footballguy
Didn't see a thread, lets get these going. WR convert. Great hands, okay blocker. Looks to be the #2 ranked TE going into the draft.

6'3 250, smooth runner with questionable speed, reminds me of Gronk a lot in that respect.

vs USC (2015)

vs Notre Dame (2014)

Rece Rush Scri
Year School Conf Class Pos G Rec Yds Avg TD Att Yds Avg TD Plays Yds Avg TD
*2014 Stanford Pac-12 SO TE 12 40 499 12.5 2 0 0 0 40 499 12.5 2
2015 Stanford Pac-12 JR TE 12 34 438 12.9 6 0 0 0 34 438 12.9 6
Career Stanford 74 937 12.7 8 0 0 0 74 937 12.7 8


*bowl stats included
 
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Stanford TE Austin Hooper is working with former Cardinal TE Zach Ertz leading up the to NFL Draft.
Hooper could test as the top athlete this week at the NFL Combine, which could propel his name to the top of tight end rankings. Tight ends have been slow to produce in the NFL and every team seemingly needs another one. Ertz is more of a receiving tight end than the complete package, but there are very few all around types.

 
 
Source: Fran Duffy on Twitter 
Feb 26 - 10:33 AM

 
NFL Media draft analyst Mike Mayock noted that Stanford TE Austin Hooper "ran and caught the ball well [during Thursday's Pro Day]."
Per Mayock, Hooper is a "big strong kid [who] has to learn how to block," but that's not uncommon for NFL skill position prospects in the early going. The 6-foot-4, 254-pounder turned in an unofficial Pro Day 40 mark of 4.65 seconds, a slight improvement over his 4.72 seconds during February's NFL Scouting Combine. Said Hooper, "It’s nice to get a good night’s sleep and go run a 4.65. I proved that I can run a little bit. ... I had to check that box." He added that he's confident that he's proven that he knows how to run sharp routes, to boot. Last season, he caught 34 passes for 438 yards and six touchdowns. Rookie Scouting Portfolio's Matt Waldman deemed him to be the best at his position in this class back before the Combine.

 
 
Source: San Francisco Chronicle

 
I like him, I just don't know where I would draft him. Considering I limited roster spots I might prefer the 2017 TEs that will be available.

Tex

 
Too early to say. I don't think any of the TEs this class are even 2nd rounders, barring a couple WRS coming out as TEs.

Will depend a lot on draft day stuff, where and when he goes, who went before him.

Presentation matters a lot for players who aren't highly touted, imo.

I would probably take him mid-late third in a neutral landing spot.

 
Thats how I feel as well. A lot of talk about Henry being the #1 TE this class, I think hes a little overrated especially in fantasy terms. Short list behind him though and Hooper is definitely on it. 

 
 

TFY Draft Insider's Tony Pauline reports that the NFL is concerned by Stanford TE Austin Hooper's blocking.
"It may take him some time to develop in that area," Pauline added. "Several [NFL sources] mentioned he's the type of player you may take off the field on third and short." Detroit Lions OC Jim Bob Cooter was on hand at Stanford's Pro day and "closely inspected" Hooper and his tight end contemporaries. Pauline says Hooper has upcoming meetings scheduled with the Miami Dolphins, Detroit Lions, Tennessee Titans and Carolina Panthers.

 
 
Source: Walter Football 
Mar 20 - 4:58 PM

 
Pro Football Focus analyst Michael Renner believes that Stanford TE Austin Hooper "isn’t nearly as polished of a receiver as Zach Ertz or Coby Fleener before him."
Renner does like Hooper's occasional show of making a tough, contested catch. There's an ominous "however" to that, though. Wrote the analyst, "Along with those highlight-reel plays, however, you’ll have to live with some frustrating drops (10 in 84 opportunities over the past two seasons)." That's just on the catching side of things. We've also heard rumblings from TFY Draft Insider's Tony Pauline and NFL Media's Mike Mayock that Hooper's blocking could be an early concern at the next level.

 
 
Source: Pro Football Focus
Mar 27 - 1:48 PM

 
Enjoyed reading Waldman's take on Hooper in his 2016 RSP. Reinforced my opinion, the concern now is landing spot and post-draft hype. Ideally Id like to land him in the third, but not confident he will make it that far.

 
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Stanford TE Austin Hooper visited the Titans and Bears earlier this week, according to Rand Getlin of NFL Media.
Hooper is viewed as the top tight end prospect by some evaluators. He projects as an inline option who wins as a receiver down the seam int he intermediate level of the field. Hooper did have five drops on the season and three in the game against Washington State. The Bears will definitely be looking for insurance behind often injured Zach Miller.

 
 
Source: Rand Getlin on Twitter 
Apr 6 - 12:06 PM

 
 

Pro Football Focus analyst Michael Renner believes Stanford TE Austin Hooper possesses the "athleticism to start from day one in the NFL, but I’d think twice about asking him to be a consistent chain mover."
PFF charted Hooper with 10 drops on 84 catchable targets over the past two seasons. "He attacks the ball in such an awkward and unnatural manner that I’m not sure it’s something that can be fixed," Renner wrote. "Teams will have to weigh whether the big plays that Hooper can create are worth the gut-wrenching drops." The 6-foot-4, 254-pounder has size, speed, athleticism and strength going for him, which is more than most TEs in this class can say. Expect him to get overdrafted.

 
 
Source: Pro Football Focus 
Apr 15 - 2:39 PM


 
In a conversation with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, a scout said that Stanford TE Austin Hooper is "OK" and merely "a low-end starter."
"He blocks well, he catches well," the scout said. "He just doesn't have any extra gears after the catch and no extra dominance after the block." Hooper, a brain, scored 29 on the Wonderlic. "Comes from a great athletic family," said another scout. "Measures his words when he talks. He tries to be like the smartest guy in the room, and he could be." Hooper's hands (10 5/8) were the largest of this year's TE crop. "Very much more of a receiver," said a third scout. "He's a little undersized but he's a good receiver. He's an off-the-line tight end, which is the thing in the NFL now."
Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

 
ESPN's Todd McShay wrote that Stanford TE Austin Hooper was the Cardinals' best pick of the 2016 NFL Draft.
"[Hooper] isn't a great route runner and he needs to continue to add weight and strength," McShay noted, "but for a team in major need of some pass-catchers with upside, Hooper is a good fit in Atlanta. Ryan can't have enough weapons." The Falcons snatched the 6-foot-4, 254-pounder up with the 81st pick in this weekend's draft. McShay specifically complimented Hooper's frame and his ability to stretch defenses with whatever the tight end equivalent of wheels might be.

 
 
Source: ESPN Insider 
May 1 - 8:00 PM

 
Great landing spot imo, I don't think it will take more than a season to usurp his competition and take over. Great fantasy destination imo.

 
Great landing spot imo, I don't think it will take more than a season to usurp his competition and take over. Great fantasy destination imo.
He's pretty high on my board.  In contest of recent TE Prospects I'd go Eifert>Kelce>Hooper>Ertz>Ebron.  

 
Third-round TE Austin Hooper has impressed OC Kyle Shanahan with his route running.
"He really comes off the ball hard," Shanahan said. "He's not the fastest guy, but he's fast enough. He’s got good cutting, so he can break off at the top." Atlanta expects Hooper to improve their red-zone offense after their 2015 struggles there. Hooper only has to beat out Jacob Tamme and Levine Toilolo for regular snaps.

 
 
Source: Atlanta Journal-Constitution

 
Austin Hooper caught 5-of-5 targets for 50 yards in Thursday's preseason game, also losing a fumble.
Hooper caught a 23-yard pass down the seam, but let the ball get chopped out as he was coming to the ground. It was the sort of rookie mistake that drives coaches crazy. Hooper got a little run with the first-team tonight, but was clearly behind Jacob Tamme. He played until the final whistle blew. If Hooper is done for the preseason, he'll go into Week 1 with six catches for 57 yards.

 
 
 
Aug 25 - 11:09 PM

 
(Rotoworld) Coach Dan Quinn confirmed rookie TE Austin Hooperwill start against the Bucs in Week 9.

Analysis: With Jacob Tamme (shoulder) already ruled out for Thursday night, it'll be Hooper followed up by blocking specialist Levine Toilolo and UDFA Josh Perkins. Tamme went down in the first quarter against the Packers, and Hooper went on to play 73 percent of the snaps. He'll probably play 75-80 percent of the reps Thursday, putting him on the streaming radar. Hooper caught all five of his targets in Week 8, and has reeled in all 12 on the season for 195 yards and a score. At 6'4/254, Hooper ran a 4.72 forty and showed elite agility for a tight end. 

 
Tried to get him in three leagues to cover my Eifert bye... only successful in one of the three. Lame. 

 
Ton of experts high on this guy this week. Don't get it. 

What was Tamme doing prior? Not much. Don't see why Hooper is such a great bye week filler.

 
He's been a dynasty stash and coincidently I absolutely needed to start him in a horrific bye and injury week for me. Great timing for the starting nod. I'm anxious to see what he can do.

He has been targeted 11 times and has 11 catches. That is eye opening to me for a rookie. He may take this gig and run with it since Tamme is JAG.

 
 OK, so I am thinking of targeting this guy, in one specific league where I am going to have to make a brutal waiver wire decision. (because of injury, I need two immediate players, and I will have to burn priority on something else) I should be able to get Hooper after waivers clear, no issues.

 He is available virtually everywhere, and now that Jacob Tamme is out for the season, I am kind of curious as to how high you guys put this guy.

He has caught 15 of 20 targets, so he seems to be pretty dependable, and from what I have seen Matt Ryan has no issue throwing to him, when other guys are out. (Tamme)

His one knock coming into the pro day and pre-NFL, was that he occasionally had the drops. But checking his stats, he started off extremely efficient, catching 11 for 11 , which is his totals through week 8 I believe.

Other than week 12 vs Arizona his schedule looks pretty easy rest-of-season.

 Whats the hope here...?   I'm not expecting a Gronk like breakout, but the dominoes have fallen in such a way for him that he may well have low end TE1-ish numbers the rest of season.

The Falcons are obviously in the playoff hunt, so there is no letting up. He seems to now be in a position where he HAS to step up, and the limited work before now has been pretty good.

Tevin Coleman is still gimpy, Devonta Freeman is all systems go, but we all know the "only" WR in town is Julio.  It would seem to be a scenario where Hooper has a great chance of being a solid TE down the stretch, barring this week.

Matt Ryan has shown us in the past he will target his tight ends, once he garners some trust.

This is looking like a scenario where owners currently starting "flavor of the week" tight ends, can take a chance on this guy and get themselves some solid production from here on out, barring injury.

I'm not forecasting a blow up, but all the right things seem to have fallen into place. I don't think low end TE1 numbers are out of the question, and he may well have a couple of big games down the stretch. He certainly has some favorable matchups.

 Thoughts....?

 TZM

 
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 OK, so I am thinking of targeting this guy, in one specific league where I am going to have to make a brutal waiver wire decision. (because of injury, I need two immediate players, and I will have to burn priority on something else) I should be able to get Hooper after waivers clear, no issues.

 He is available virtually everywhere, and now that Jacob Tamme is out for the season, I am kind of curious as to how high you guys put this guy.

He has caught 15 of 20 targets, so he seems to be pretty dependable, and from what I have seen Matt Ryan has no issue throwing to him, when other guys are out. (Tamme)

His one knock coming into the pro day and pre-NFL, was that he occasionally had the drops. But checking his stats, he started off extremely efficient, catching 11 for 11 , which is his totals through week 8 I believe.

Other than week 12 vs Arizona his schedule looks pretty easy rest-of-season.

 Whats the hope here...?   I'm not expecting a Gronk like breakout, but the dominoes have fallen in such a way for him that he may well have low end TE1-ish numbers the rest of season.

The Falcons are obviously in the playoff hunt, so there is no letting up. He seems to now be in a position where he HAS to step up, and the limited work before now has been pretty good.

Tevin Coleman is still gimpy, Devonta Freeman is all systems go, but we all know the "only" WR in town is Julio.  It would seem to be a scenario where Hooper has a great chance of being a solid TE down the stretch, barring this week.

Matt Ryan has shown us in the past he will target his tight ends, once he garners some trust.

This is looking like a scenario where owners currently starting "flavor of the week" tight ends, can take a chance on this guy and get themselves some solid production from here on out, barring injury.

I'm not forecasting a blow up, but all the right things seem to have fallen into place. I don't think low end TE1 numbers are out of the question, and he may well have a couple of big games down the stretch. He certainly has some favorable matchups.

 Thoughts....?

 TZM
I think he's a much better athlete than Tamme but it all comes down to targetting in the ATL offense. It just doesn't happen all that much. I guess they could game plan differently  with  their new toy but I'm hesitant.

 
Quote
Speaking at minicamp, Matt Ryan said sophomore TE Austin Hooper has improved "exponentially" this offseason.

Ryan expects Hooper to be "a big part of our offensive success this year," and said the second-year pro is "playing like a veteran out there." As a rookie, Hooper quickly emerged as one of the NFL's best blocking tight ends and flashed an ability to stretch the field. Hooper offers 2017 breakout potential.





Source: Kelsey Conway on Twitter








 


 
Sigmoidally curved has my vote. What a stupid discussion- where's Ogre when you need him, this place smells like nerds.

 
I think he's a much better athlete than Tamme but it all comes down to targetting in the ATL offense. It just doesn't happen all that much. I guess they could game plan differently  with  their new toy but I'm hesitant.
Matt Ryan has targeted TEs in the past.  Granted under a different OC & system.

2008: 30 TE Targets: Justin Peelie
2009: 151 TE Targets: Tony Gonzales
2010: 132 TE Targets: Tony Gonzales
2011: 134 TE Targets: Tony Gonzales
2012: 134 TE Targets: Tony Gonzales
2013: 137 TE Targets: Tony Gonzales
2014: 55 TE Targets: Levine Toilolo
2015: 98 TE Targets: Jacob Tamme
2016: 77 TE Targets: Jacob Tamme

To me it appears the targets are dependent on the talent.  Tony G averaged around 120 targets per year for three years even with Julio, Roddy and a pass catching RB (JaQuizz, Steven Jackson, etc..).  I think 100 to 120 targets to the TE position is achievable this year with 80-85%% going to Hooper.  He averaged 14 yards per catch and a 70% catch rate last year.  I'd bump both those down to be conservative.

He's more talented than Tamme and less talented than Tony G. But there isn't a strong second option for receptions after Julio. So I think it bodes well for him.

 
The use of the term exponentially has been used so often that it has become nonsense.

What is a better word for “exponentially”?
Or he really is increasing exponentially?

Last year he had 19 catches. next year he'll have 29, next 43, next 64, and when he retires in 12 years, he'll be catching 2465 balls per year. No big deal.

But seriously, an exponential increase from 1 year to the next is less than a linear increase.  Basically, Hooper looks a lot better and could actually be useful this year.

 
The notion that you can make a meaningful growth rate extrapolation from two data points is laughable.

In Hooper's case, we're trying to extrapolate a rate of growth from a single data point.

This is an exercise in mathematical absurdity, whatever growth model you like best.

Also, why is no one considering the prospect that Hooper might experience exponential decay?

 
So what you're saying is that usage of the adjective "exponentially" is increasing exponentially.

This is a problem why?
It is not so much a problem as it is inaccurate communication. 

I have heard the term used perhaps 100 different ways in the past week or so. Everywhere I turn, the political talking heads are using it, printed news using it, sports news using it.

In most cases I think the word dramatic would be more accurate, as it is being used for emphasis. However a lot of the folks using it would not like to point out that they are just being dramatic in their expression, because they would like to be taken seriously. Another reason I think people say exponential is because they want to sound smart, but the context of their use of the term does not.

This has long been a pet peeve of mine.  :nerd:  I just heard it a few too many times recently and had to say something.

Sorry for the hijacking. I think Hooper has a great opportunity to increase his production this season. (Do we really need more dramatic flair in saying this?)

 

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