Have You Seen T.J. Hockenson?
There was never a reality in which Jordan Addison wasn’t going to be suspended.
The Minnesota Vikings have to expect more than they have gotten from T.J. Hockenson, and it’s beyond time for him to produce.
His actions were straightforward, and the league was always going to remain consistent with the discipline. That meant the Minnesota Vikings offense would be without him for three weeks.
That was immediately addressed by trading for Adam Thielen. The veteran wide receiver brings a baseline level of assumed production while being a good story. Thielen didn’t need to be the key piece of the puzzle, though. That’s where tight end T.J. Hockenson should have come in.
Vikings TE T.J. Hockenson Has Been a Non-Factor thru 2 Games
When the Vikings traded for Hockenson, the move couldn’t have made more sense. Irv Smith Jr. was hurt once again, and Hockenson was a sizable upgrade over the best of expectations for the current tight end. It immediately panned out, and Kwesi Adofo-Mensah looked like a genius for pulling off the move.
Fast forward to where we are now, and it’s worth wondering if the knee injury is still a problem, or Hockenson simply isn’t the same player. Despite a dynamic skillset, he has failed to produce as one of the league’s best tight ends since last year, and he has been non-existent to start the season.
Hockenson has caught just 4-of-7 targets for a whopping 27 yards. He’s dropped passes, and he’s missed assignments. He hasn’t provided the passing game with an alternative option, which makes it easy to overlook him as a whole. That simply cannot continue.
The reality is that this Kevin O’Connell offense is mainly constructed with Hockenson being a key member in a production role. Last season, Josh Oliver thrived while Hockenson was out, and despite his status as a blocking tight end, he created opportunities. The opportunity for Hockenson is already designed and baked in, but he continues to underutilize it.
We are only a couple of weeks into the season, and there is room for improvement. Hockenson needs to find that, though, and quickly. When Addison comes back, the Vikings will have another mouth to feed, but there are plenty of passes to go around. Thielen didn’t come in to be a savior, and Hockenson should be doing more to shoulder the load.
At some point, we need to see it play out on the field. Hockenson has his future to play for, and right now, he’s toying with tanking it.
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