T.J. Hockenson will not become the latest player to cash in on the simmering tight end market, at least not before Sunday’s season-opener against the Philadelphia Eagles.
But the Pro Bowl Detroit Lions tight end said he has “no worries” about his contract status heading into his all-important fourth season.
“That’s one of those things where I’m going to leave that up to (my agent) and those guys,” Hockenson told the Free Press this week. “I play ball and I do well, it’ll come.”
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The Lions exercised the fifth-year option on Hockenson’s rookie contract this spring, guaranteeing him a $9.392 million salary for 2023.
Lions general manager Brad Holmes said in March the team had internal discussions about extensions for Hockenson and fellow 2019 draft pick Amani Oruwariye, but Hockenson said “I don’t even think (negotiations have) started, so no worries.”
Oruwariye will be an unrestricted free agent after the season.
Hockenson has been a focal point of the Lions offense since they made him the No. 8 pick of the 2019 draft. He missed the final four games of his 32-catch rookie season with a broken bone in his leg, then rebounded to set career-highs with 67 catches, 723 yards and six touchdowns in his Pro Bowl year of 2020.
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Last season, Hockenson was on pace to top all those numbers before undergoing surgery to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his thumb in December.
Healthy now, Hockenson should be a featured receiver in the Lions’ new-look offense alongside Amon-Ra St. Brown and DJ Chark.
“The biggest thing is really to maximize his potential,” Lions tight ends coach Tanner Engstrand said. “What he does well, how can we get that to the next level and everything else that he does is just raising his level, his game. How much can he dominate, I suppose. Can he be that guy? And we know he can be. And he has been at times, so we’re excited about that to see where that takes us.”
Hockenson said he is open to having contract negotiations during the season, but stressed “that’s not really my worry right now.”
Darren Waller reset the tight end market when he signed a three-year, $51 million extension with the Las Vegas Raiders on Saturday.
Two other tight ends, Dawson Knox of the Buffalo BIlls (four years, $53.6 million) and David Njoku of the Cleveland Browns (three years, $56.75 million) landed supsersized extensions this offseason, and two more, Dalton Schultz of the Dallas Cowboys and Mike Gesicki of the Miami Dolphins, will play this fall on the franchise tag after failing to reach long-term deals with their respective teams.
Absent a long-term deal, the Lions can use the franchise tag on Hockenson in 2024.
“My worry is to play ball, so I think that’s kind of where it’s at,” Hockenson said. “Whether it comes halfway through or whether it comes in two years, it is what it is.”
Contact Dave Birkett at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.