Vikings’ T.J. Hockenson Provides Grim Injury Update On Himself

Minnesota Vikings tight end T.J. Hockenson suffered a devastating knee injury late last season, tearing his ACL and his MCL in a Week 16 loss to the Detroit Lions.

During an appearance on the NFL Schedule Release ’24 Show, Hockenson provided an update on his potential return, and it doesn’t sound very promising.

“They haven’t really put a timeline on it,” Hockenson said, via Grant Gordon of NFL.com. “We’re just kind of taking it day by day, week by week, there’s just so many variables that you can go through in this process.”

Hockenson is a major weapon in the Vikings’ aerial attack. In 15 games in 2023, he hauled in 95 receptions for 960 yards and five touchdowns.

While there may be no definitive timeline for the 26-year-old, he does say that his recovery has been going well.

“I’m doing really good right now,” Hockenson said. “We’re attacking each process. I’m attacking each one and it’s been awesome, the progression has been incredible.”

The optimistic expectation is that Hockenson will be back for Week 5, when the Vikings travel to London to take on the New York Jets. The star pass-catcher is hopeful.

“Going overseas, expanding the league and the NFL and the fanbase, across, not just the nation,” he said. “But the world is just super exciting for the Minnesota Vikings.”

Hockenson, who played his collegiate football at the University of Iowa, was originally selected by the Detroit Lions with the eighth overall pick of the 2019 NFL Draft.

He spent the first three-and-a-half years of his career with the Lions before being traded to the Vikings midway through the 2022 campaign.

Hockenson produced mixed results in Detroit, logging 32 catches for 367 yards and a couple of scores during his rookie campaign and following that up by catching 67 passes for 723 yards and six touchdowns in Year 2. He proceeded to snare 61 balls for 583 yards while reaching the end zone four times in his last full season with the Lions in 2021.

In a full 17 games between Detroit and Minnesota in 2022, Hockenson registered 86 grabs for 914 yards and six touchdowns, making his first trip to the Pro Bowl.

When Hockenson is healthy, the Vikings have quite the pass-catching trio that also includes wide receivers Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison.

Hopefully, T.J. Hockenson can get back on the field sooner rather than later.