INDIANAPOLIS — Indianapolis Colts safety Malik Hooker had two offseason surgeries and spent seven excruciating months waiting to prove he could excel in the NFL.
After surgeries forced him to skip the league’s annual scouting combine workouts, miss all of Indy’s offseason work and see limited time during training camp, Hooker finally got his first chance to start hitting at full speed.Vontae Davis Jersey
The Colts had no complaints.
“Malik is a natural. He is as advertised,” coach Chuck Pagano said.Frank Gore Jersey “He is going to be a factor, he’s got a ton of range and the ball skills and the instincts are there. We’re really pleased to see him come up and the times that he was down in the box and the plays that he made in the open field, the tackling and physicality that he showed was impressive.Peyton Manning Jersey”
Aside from injuries, the 6-foot-2, 212-pound rookie out of Ohio State is off to a good start.
Hooker missed practice again Tuesday with a shoulder injury. However, Pagano said he doesn’t expect the injury to keep Hooker out long.
The book on Hooker coming out of college was that he was a playmaker who struggled at times with tackling. Hooker found the critiques to be both confounding and motivating.Andrew Luck Jersey He promised that when he was given the all-clear, he would erase all doubts.
“I really don’t pay attention to that stuff because I like to tackle. I put a lot of emphasis on that before I came to the NFL,T.Y. Hilton Jersey” he said. “But when I got out there, I knew I was going to make the most of my opportunity.”