Outside of quarterback, there might not be a more complex position in the NFL than tight end.
The responsibilities are numerous. The playbook goes on and on. Running game, passing game, a tight end has to do it all.
It's why most players at that position struggle to see the field as rookies. It typically takes a year to get up to speed.
The Lions seem to feel differently about T.J. Hockenson, drafting the Iowa product eighth overall on Thursday night. And Hockenson, the 2018 Mackey Award winner as the nation's top tight end, believes the same about himself.
In a conference call with local reporters, he expressed confidence in his ability to make an impact in year one.
"Coming from the University of Iowa, it's really helped me," Hockenson said. "Coming from a pro-style offense, being a three-down tight end, being able to hear the call in the huddle and translating that, you only have a split second to do that. You decipher things. At Iowa, I really wanted to talk to everyone (and) be able to learn. I knew as much of the playbook as every guy on that team, and that's the same exact thing I'm going to do in Detroit.
"I'm going to work hard and do everything I can to learn that playbook inside and out and be able to talk to everyone about it."
Even with the Lions signing tight end Jesse James earlier this offseason, there will be an opportunity for Hockenson to step in right away. He's indeed a true three-down tight end, as explosive as a run blocker as a pass catcher. It's why he drew comparisons to Rob Gronkowski during the draft process.
But Hockenson isn't trying to be anybody else.
"I'm my own person," he said. "I'm my own tight end. I like to be a three-down tight end. I watched guys before this offseason like George (Kittle), like (Travis) Kelce, like Gronkowski, just to take little bits from their game and bring them into mine. And I'm going to watch more guys, plenty more guys, and see what they do well and try to translate them into my game."
The last time the Lions drafted a tight end in the top 10, of course, it didn't quite work out. Eric Ebron, the 10th overall pick in 2014, was released last offseason. (He had some fun at the Lions' expense Thursday night.) That will put extra pressure on Hockenson to deliver, and so will this: he's the highest-drafted tight end since Vernon Davis went No. 6 overall to the 49ers in 2006.
Not that it matters to Hockenson.
"I don't put pressure on myself," he said. "I'm going to go in there and I'm going to dive into the playbook. I've gotten to this point by working hard and doing everything in my power to get to where I'm at, and that's exactly what I'm going to do when I get to Detroit. You start at the bottom of the totem pole and you work your way up."
