T.J. Hockenson says it's funny. He's not big on social media, and social media has played a big role in his rise. In similar irony, he's a tight end who spends a lot of his time studying wide receivers.
"I think in general a (defensive back) underplays what a tight end can do. When you’re able to do things that a wideout can do, they’re just not expecting it. And that’s a huge component (in my game)," Hockenson said as the Lions prepare to face the Packers on Monday Night Football.
To that end, Hockenson studied Calvin Johnson in the offseason. Specifically, he studied how Megatron "used his body against defenders." On Friday, Hockenson said he's also been watching a lot of Davante Adams and DeAndre Hopkins. If he can emulate Adams on Monday, the Lions might have a chance of leaving Green Bay with a win.
"I’ve been watching D-Hop, (No.) 17 who we’re about to play this week," he said. "Guys like that, watching what they do and trying to implement it into your game, I think that’s really where it all comes together."
Adams led the NFL in touchdowns (18) and yards per game (98.1) last season. He's been one of the game's five best receivers for five years running. Hockenson produced like a top-five tight end last season and he's knocking on the door of the top three, that elite group comprised of Travis Kelce, George Kittle and Darren Waller. What can he take from Adams?
"His releases are ridiculous," Hockenson said.
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Hockenson is indeed pretty quiet on social media. His last post on Twitter was a shoutout to Luka Garza after his fellow Hawkeye was drafted by the Pistons. His last post on Instagram was a series of action shots at the start of training camp captioned, "There’s power in silence.. it will all speak for itself."
But Hockenson lurks behind the screen more than you might think. Whenever he hops on his socials, he likes to scroll through video compilations of the best releases by wide receivers. Then he re-enacts them on the practice field, as he showed again and again this year in training camp.
"Usually there’s a reel that shows up of releases. So I’ll keep clicking through and be like, 'Oh, that’s pretty sweet, I’ll try that one tomorrow. Oh man, that was a good one, I’ll try that one.' So it’s really just trial and error," Hockenson said. "We’re out here to practice out just to see what works and what doesn’t."
Some of the things that work for Adams are starting to work for Hockenson.
"He’s a head nod, he’s a feet guy, he jumps into it. He’s one of those guys that takes a one-two and then shows one way and goes the other. Really quick out of his breaks, really explosive out of his cuts. I think that’s just something that he was naturally born with, but also that he learned from somebody else," Hockenson said.
From the first day of OTA's this summer, Hockenson was a problem for Detroit's defense. His breaks were sudden and his cuts were decisive. He was undressing linebackers and DB's alike and getting look after look from Jared Goff. It was no surprise when Hockenson led all Lions receivers in targets (11), receptions (8) and yards (97) in Week 1, and it won't be a surprise when he paces their passing attack for the rest of the year.
He's not just physically more dynamic. He's sharper mentally. Hockenson said he has a better feel for how to attack zone coverage versus man coverage, thanks in part to conversations last year with former Lions receiver Mohamed Sanu and ongoing chats with defensive teammates like Amani Oruwariye and Will Harris. He said he's "with the right people," and that includes offseason training partners like Kittle and Packers TE Robert Tonyan.
"Sanu was a big part of just seeing it in person and seeing how things work, and I took a lot from him," Hockenson said. "He was a guy that was really good at showing something (to a defense), and then he taught me what a defense thinks, what a DB thinks.
"And some of my best buddies are on the defensive side: Amani Oruwariye, Will Harris. Just talking to them and saying, 'Hey, what’d you see on that and why did you think I was going that way rather than this way? Why did you think I was doing this rather than that?' Being able to have communication with those guys is huge."
Oruwariye and Harris will have to deal with Adams Monday night. And their counterparts will have to deal with Hockenson, who doesn't intend to be known solely for his receiving numbers. That will be a challenge if he keeps putting up numbers like he did in Week 1, no matter how cleanly and how meanly he executes his blocking duties.
"I didn’t come into this league to be a one-dimensional tight end," Hockenson said. "I’ve always said that I wanted to be a three-down tight end. You can put me in there to block a 280-pound guy and I’ll be able to do that and then be able to get open against a 200-pound guy."
Watch Hockenson closely Monday night in Green Bay. If you see shades of the best wideout on the field -- a head nod here, a jump into his route there --
it won't be by mistake. The more he can mirror elite receivers, the more quickly he can become an elite tight end.