Tight end T.J. Hockenson tore two ligaments in his right knee the last time he played Detroit, his former team. “You gotta just let that kind of stuff go,” he said Thursday.
Since his return from knee surgery on Nov. 3, Vikings tight end T.J. Hockenson has 39 receptions for 446 yards, the third most on the team despite having played only nine games. (Carlos Gonzalez/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
The last time Vikings tight end T.J. Hockenson played the Lions, an injury knocked him out of the final quarter and the season.
“That’s not really anything I try to think about,” Hockenson said Thursday.
Sunday night’s game in Detroit will be Hockenson’s first against his former team since he injured his knee against the Lions in Week 16 of the 2023 season. He did not return to game action until Week 9 this season, two games after the Vikings hosted the Lions and lost 31-29.
Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell deferred to Hockenson on Wednesday when asked about the significance of this matchup to the seventh-year tight end.
“I just think it’s significant to our team for a lot of reasons,” O’Connell said.
And that’s true: The Lions are one of only two teams the Vikings have lost to this season. The NFC North title — and the celebratory hats and T-shirts that come with it — are on the line. So is the NFC’s No. 1 playoff seed, which comes with a first-round bye and home-field advantage.
“It’s a huge game, but it’s another game,” said Hockenson’s fellow tight end Josh Oliver. “I think it’s the same thing to [Hockenson]. He’s played in a lot of big games, made a lot of big plays.”
Hockenson’s history with the Lions does add another layer to the intrigue, though, even if it’s not something he likes to dwell on.
After being drafted No. 8 overall by the Lions in 2019, Hockenson spent a little over three seasons in Detroit before being traded at the deadline to the Vikings in November 2022.
Four months later in the December 2023 matchup with the Lions, Hockenson took a low hit from safety Kerby Joseph and tore his right ACL and MCL.
His recovery took 10 months. His surgery to repair his ACL was delayed to January 2023 to allow his MCL to heal first. He was still on injured reserve as the 2024 season opened.
When Hockenson spoke to the news media for the first time following his injury in April, he questioned why the hit he took is still allowed in the game.
That sentiment does not seem to have morphed into any sort of resentment for Joseph or his former team. Hockenson denied that Sunday’s matchup held any extra weight because of his injury.
“Injuries happen in this game and in this league,” Hockenson said. “I’m excited to play ‘em for sure, and I’m excited to be out there with the boys this time around and be able to make an impact that way, but nothing like that really goes in your head.
“You gotta just let that kind of stuff go and realize it’s football and it’s just another game.”
Since his return against the Colts on Nov. 3, Hockenson has 39 receptions for 446 yards — the third most on the team despite having played only nine games.
He had a 114-yard performance in the Vikings’ 30-27 overtime win against the Bears on Nov. 24. He was the go-to target for quarterback Sam Darnold on the scoring drive that ended the first half against the Packers on Sunday.
Hockenson is also used in the run game as a blocker, which wide receiver Justin Jefferson said rounds him out as an offensive weapon the Vikings have been grateful to have back over the past nine games, all of which they’ve won.
“Just being versatile like that, it’s definitely something that’s very useful for us,” Jefferson said.
One key stat Hockenson is still without since he’s returned, though, is a touchdown.
He’s scored at least two receiving touchdowns in every season he’s been in the league. His career-high is six in 2020 while still with Detroit; last year he scored five for the Vikings.
It’s the type of play the Vikings could use at loud and hostile Ford Field. A play that quiets down raucous fans and fuels the impression it’s the few trying to triumph over the many, a group mentality Hockenson said is a “fun” one to play with.
“It’s our job to be able to do that, quiet it down and increase our momentum in certain ways,” Hockenson said. “You gotta love it when you go into a loud stadium. It’s just the boys versus everyone.”
If Hockenson does score a touchdown against the Lions — or make any other big play — it will certainly be a boost for “the boys” in what is the Vikings’ biggest game of the season.