Indianapolis Colts safety Malik Hooker entered the 2018 season looking to bounce back after a torn ACL claimed the second half of his rookie campaign.
The former first-round pick didn’t play as much of a single-high as he did during his rookie season, but Hooker still had a solid season even though he wasn’t targeted much downfield.
Hooker wound up playing 14 games (all starts) while recording 44 tackles (30 solo), four passes defended and one interception.
Having been dubbed a ballhawk with immense range coming out of college, those numbers don’t impress. However, they hardly tell the whole story.
Working mostly in a two-high scheme, Hooker was solely responsible for one-deep half of the field for the majority of the defensive plays during the season. Given his immense range and ball skills, opposing quarterbacks rarely tested the Ohio State product.
Some might consider Hooker’s lack of production to be worrisome, but the 22-year-old simply did his job working in a Cover 2 defense. He didn’t have nearly as many opportunities to make plays on the ball given that he wasn’t tested all that much.
The Colts have a major need to add to the safety position this offseason, but Hooker will continue to be a cornerstone in the secondary entering his third campaign.
