In an offseason where everyone is seemingly running away from the New York Jets, there is at least one person who wants to stay.
Veteran quarterback Hendon Hooker told ESPN radio’s Jake Asman that he wants to re-sign in New York this offseason.
“Yeah, everything was positive. I loved every part about it. I love AG [Aaron Glenn], I love what he stands for, and I love the culture he is trying to bring into the locker room. Then, on top of that, one of my best friends, Tyler Baron, who got hurt he is there with the Jets. My little cousin Payton Page plays D-Tackle. So it’s just cool to be in that environment and have so many people around me. Then I got to play with two of my roommates from college: Raheem Blackshear and Khalil Herbert. It was a great time there,” Hooker explained on “The Jake Asman Show” live from the Super Bowl.
Hooker, 28, is scheduled to be an unrestricted free agent this offseason.
Hooker Explains How He Landed on the Jets in 2025
The former Virginia Tech and Tennessee product signed to the Jets’ practice squad on December 18. 2025. He was promoted to the active roster on January 3, 2026.
“I kind of got a call in the middle of the night. It was like [a] 7:30 [call] to get on a 9:30 flight to JFK. So I got on the road, went to the airport, [and] boom, I’m in New York or in Jersey. I had a quick workout, signed at 12:30, and then I was at practice at 12:45,” Hooker explained on “The Jake Asman Show.” “It was that quick.”
Hooker becoming a Jet so randomly late in the season was somewhat of a surprise. However, people have been connecting the dots between Hooker and the Jets for a while.
The moment the team added head coach Aaron Glenn from the Detroit Lions, people from the outside started predicting that former Lions players would follow.
One of those names people thought would sign with the Jets is Hooker. The veteran QB confirmed to ESPN radio’s Jake Asman that there were no talks about bringing him in during the past offseason.
Hooker admitted that he was “a little bit” surprised that talks didn’t happen, considering his connections to the team, “but God has me in his hands, and he will put me where he wants me. So I’m just where I need to be.”
“A lot of familiar faces: Tanner [Engstrand] as OC, AG, and a lot of other guys that were in Detroit as well. It was really cool, kind of being back in the offense that I know like the back of my hand,” Hooker said.
A Lot of Changes, but a Hooker Contract Extension Makes Sense
Some of those familiar faces won’t be back with the Jets in 2026. Engstrand was fired and landed with the Atlanta Falcons. The offensive coaching staff is still being figured out, and many of the assistants who were here last year won’t be back.
That doesn’t mean Hooker shouldn’t come back. Candidly, the Jets lack both a short and long term solution at quarterback on the roster.
The team is expected to throw a stick of dynamite in the QB room and blow it up. Hooker would be a low risk – high reward type of move. If you’re the Jets, you can sign him at a veteran minimum number, and make him your third or fourth quarterback on the depth chart heading into the bulk of the offseason.
Let him compete in training camp and see if he surprises. If he doesn’t work out, you simply move on before final roster cuts. However, if he looks good, you can hold onto him, whether that be on the 53-man roster or even on the practice squad.
Before getting hurt in college, Hooker was in the Heisman conversation with the Volunteers. That talent is still in there, but we haven’t seen it flash at the NFL level yet. That is someone worth developing.
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