Trade proposal sends Hendon Hooker to the Saints in exchange for a young defensive lineman the Lions recently had interest in

The Hendon Hooker experiment is not working out for the Detroit Lions. The former third-round pick is coming off another struggle in a preseason game. This time, he got benched midway through the second quarter after fumbling twice and throwing for just 38 yards. It didn't help his case that Kyle Allen came in and immediately had a better showing.

Now, as we move closer to the end of training camp and the preseason, the Lions look more like a team that is going to cut Hooker and carry two quarterbacks than a team that is going to hold on to him in hopes that he catches on while holding a roster spot. The Lions don't have to cut him, though; there are teams out there that would probably trade for him.

One team that comes to mind is the New Orleans Saints. They have such a rough quarterback situation there after Derek Carr's abrupt retirement. Tyler Shough could be their guy of the future, but we know that Spencer Rattler and Jake Haner are definitely not. Both have struggled in the regular season time they've had. For that reason, the Saints might be on the lookout for another guy who can come in and have a shot to get the backup spot or even hold down a practice squad role. Hooker would benefit from having more of a chance in New Orleans than he would in Detroit.

With that in mind, we worked up this trade proposal that sends Hooker to the Big Easy.

Lions get: DT Khristian Boyd
Saints get: Hendon Hooker

Look, I know Lions fans are thinking that since Hooker is a former third-round pick, their team should get more in a return, and that's just not happening. In three seasons, we haven't seen enough from Hooker to warrant more than a seventh-round pick in return. Instead of asking for that, the Lions get Boyd in return.

The second-year nose tackle was on the Lions' radar ahead of the 2024 NFL Draft. They had him out for a top-30 visit and attended his Pro Day. The Saints took him in the sixth round, and now that the Saints have signed Davon Godchaux and rookie Omari Thomas is showing up, Boyd could be cut by the Saints at the final cutdown.

The Lions could use the help on the interior of their defensive line with Alim McNeill, Mekhi Wingo, and Levi Onwuzurike all expected to miss significant time. Boyd is not a starter in Detroit, but he has a better chance at cracking the rotation for a good part of the season in Detroit than he does in New Orleans. So it's worth trying for the Lions.

We'll see in the coming weeks what the Lions do with Hooker, but this right here could be something that's worthwhile for both teams and both players. Frankly, if Boyd is cut and the Lions don't do this trade, claiming him on waivers might be worthwhile.