Coming off a “redshirt year” as a rookie last year, Hendon Hooker is fully allowed some development leeway. Struggles with accuracy during OTAs could be blamed on a finger injury, and literally having to do work from the ground up (footwork) to fully become an NFL quarterback.

By all accounts Hooker has had an up and down training camp so far, rotating second-team work with Nate Sudfeld. This week’s joint practices, and the preseason opener, against the New York Giants, look to be very important in the backup quarterback battle. And in some sense, an opportunity for Hooker to separate himself from a nine-year veteran with 37 career regular season pass attempts.

If Hooker can’t separate himself from Sudfeld, the Lions will have a problem behind Jared Goff.

Before Monday’s practice against the Giants, during which he worked with the third-team offense again while Sudfeld worked with the second-team (h/t to John Maakaron of SI.com), Lions’ head coach Dan Campbell was asked about the benefit of joint practices for Hooker.

Dan Campbell can’t hide lingering reality with Hendon Hooker

Here’s what Campbell said in response to that question about Hooker.

“Honestly, nothing. He just needs reps. And it doesn’t matter if it’s us or it’s them or it’s a game, he just needs reps and reps and reps. When he goes to bed, he needs reps, and he wakes up and he needs reps. And so anytime he can be out there and run the offense and function. It’s going to be good for him.”

Campbell said some similar things about Hooker back at this year’s NFL Combine, and when OTAs started in May. The young quarterback does simply need reps, however they come.

But when does “he needs reps” become “we need to start seeing something”? Back at the start of OTAs Campbell noted how Hooker needed to show he can run the offense by the end of camp, within the core idea of being able to keep things afloat if he had to play. But now it’s back to “he needs reps.”

Last week, Lions’ offensive coordinator Ben Johnson did his best to quell whatever concerns there might be about Hooker. Campbell didn’t quite do the same on Monday morning, reverting back to something that shouldn’t be the only answer to how joint practices against an actual opposing defense will benefit Hooker.