Kendall Hinton (born February 19, 1997) is an American professional football wide receiver who is a free agent. He played college football for the Wake Forest Demon Deacons as a quarterback and wide receiver and signed with the Broncos as an undrafted free agent in 2020. That season, he made an appearance as an emergency quarterback following the rest of the team's quarterbacks being placed in COVID-19 quarantine for a week. In doing so, Hinton became the first non-professional quarterback to play significant snaps at the position in an NFL game since running back Tom Matte with the Baltimore Colts in 1965.
![]() Hinton with the Broncos in 2021 | |||||||||||||||||
Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
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Born: | Durham, North Carolina, U.S. | February 19, 1997||||||||||||||||
Height: | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||||||||||||||||
Weight: | 195 lb (88 kg) | ||||||||||||||||
Career information | |||||||||||||||||
High school: | Southern Durham (Durham, North Carolina) | ||||||||||||||||
College: | Wake Forest (2015–2019) | ||||||||||||||||
Position: | Wide receiver | ||||||||||||||||
Undrafted: | 2020 | ||||||||||||||||
Career history | |||||||||||||||||
Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||||||
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Career NFL statistics | |||||||||||||||||
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Player stats at PFR |
Early life
editHinton played quarterback at Southern Durham High School in Durham, North Carolina. As a high school junior, Hinton threw for 3,972 yards and 39 touchdowns en route to a 3–AA championship title.[1]
College career
editRated a three-star prospect by 247Sports and Rivals, Hinton committed to play college football for the Wake Forest Demon Deacons on June 11, 2014.[2] As a true freshman in 2015, Hinton played in nine games and started in two of them. In the nine games, he threw for 929 yards and four touchdowns, while rushing for 390 yards and seven touchdowns.[3] Against Army on September 19, Hinton replaced injured starting quarterback John Wolford in the first quarter of the game, and led the Demon Deacons to a 24–21 win by passing for 159 yards and two touchdowns.[4] The next week against Indiana, Hinton made his first career start in place of Wolford, and had 245 yards passing along with 57 yards rushing and two touchdowns in the 31–24 loss.[5] Hinton's 245 passing yards set a Wake Forest school record for most passing yards by a player in his first career start.[6] He started again the following week against Florida State on October 3, throwing for 215 yards in a loss.[7]
As a sophomore, Hinton suffered a sprained ankle in the Deacon Demons Week 3 game against Delaware. Initially expected to only miss 2–4 weeks, Hinton did not play for the remainder of the season and was granted a medical redshirt.[8] As a redshirt sophomore, Hinton served as the primary backup quarterback to John Wolford in 2017, starting one game against Clemson in place of an injured Wolford.[9] Hinton completed 14 of 30 passes for 203 yards and 2 touchdowns in the 28–14 loss.[10]
As a junior he was projected to be the starting quarterback entering the season, Hinton was suspended for the first three games of the season for violating team rules.[11] Following his return from suspension, Hinton was named the backup quarterback to true freshman Sam Hartman.[12] Despite entering the transfer portal at the end of his redshirt junior year, Hinton opted to return to Wake Forest for his redshirt senior season.[13] In his redshirt senior season, Hinton transitioned to playing slot receiver full-time, racking up 73 receptions for 1,001 yards and four touchdowns.[14]
Professional career
editHeight | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | |||||||||
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5 ft 10+3⁄8 in (1.79 m) |
193 lb (88 kg) |
30+1⁄2 in (0.77 m) |
9+7⁄8 in (0.25 m) | |||||||||
All values from Pro Day[15] |
Hinton signed with the Denver Broncos as an undrafted free agent on April 26, 2020.[16][17] He was waived on September 5, 2020,[18] but re-signed with their practice squad on November 4, 2020.[19] In late November 2020, all four Broncos quarterbacks were ruled ineligible to play in a Week 12 game against the New Orleans Saints due to COVID-19 pandemic protocols, so Hinton was elevated to the active roster as an emergency quarterback option for the team, as his time as a quarterback at Wake Forest made him the only player on the Broncos’ roster who had experience at the position.[20][21][22]
He subsequently completed only a single 13-yard pass to tight end Noah Fant out of nine attempts, while also recording two interceptions as the Broncos lost 31–3.[23] Hinton reverted to the practice squad following the game,[24] and signed a reserve/futures contract with the team on January 4, 2021.[25]
On August 31, 2021, Hinton was waived by the Broncos and re-signed to the practice squad the next day.[26][27] He was promoted to the active roster on September 14, 2021.[28] Against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Hinton caught his first career touchdown pass in the 27–19 loss.[29]
On August 30, 2022, Hinton was waived by the Broncos and signed to the practice squad the next day.[30][31] He was promoted to the active roster on September 17 for the Broncos' Week 2 game against the Houston Texans, in which he caught one pass for 20 yards en route to a 16–9 win. On September 19, he reverted back to the practice squad.[32] On September 24, he was once again elevated to the active roster for the Broncos' Week 3 game against the San Francisco 49ers, in which he recorded one reception for 27 yards in an 11–10 win. He was signed to the active roster on October 10.[33]
On July 28, 2023, Hinton was activated from the physically unable to perform list.[34] He was waived August 23, 2023.[35]
NFL career statistics
editYear | Team | Games | Receiving | Rushing | Returning | Passing | Sacks | Fumbles | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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GP | GS | Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Att | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Ret | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Cmp | Att | Pct | Yds | Avg | TD | Int | Rtg | Sck | SckY | Fum | Lost | ||
2020 | DEN | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | 2 | 7 | 3.5 | 5 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 9 | 11.1 | 13 | 1.4 | 0 | 2 | 0.0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
2021 | DEN | 16 | 1 | 15 | 175 | 11.7 | 40 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | 2 | 24 | 12.0 | 15 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 100.0 | 1 | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 79.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
2022 | DEN | 12 | 5 | 24 | 311 | 13.0 | 35 | 0 | 2 | 13 | 6.5 | 13 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 0 | 0 |
Career | 29 | 6 | 39 | 486 | 12.5 | 40 | 1 | 4 | 20 | 5.0 | 13 | 0 | 2 | 24 | 12.0 | 15 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 20.0 | 14 | 1.4 | 0 | 2 | 0.0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
References
edit- ^ Stevens, Nick (April 17, 2020). "Prior adversity helps former Southern Durham QB Kendall Hinton prepare for NFL Draft amid pandemic". HighSchoolOT.com. Retrieved July 31, 2020.
- ^ Stevens, Nick (June 11, 2014). "Southern Durham QB Hinton commits to Wake Forest". HighSchoolOT.com. Retrieved July 31, 2020.
- ^ O'Neill, Conor (January 24, 2019). "Kendall Hinton to return to Deacons for next season". Winston-Salem Journal. Retrieved July 31, 2020.
- ^ "Wake Forest 17, Army 14". Rocky Mount Telegram. September 20, 2015. Retrieved November 29, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Collins, Dan (September 27, 2015). "Wake Forest's rally falls short in loss". The News and Observer. Retrieved November 29, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ D'Angelo, Tom (October 3, 2015). "Noles look to swamp Wake". The Palm Beach Post. Retrieved November 29, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Noles lose Cook, win game". The Tampa Tribune. October 4, 2015. Retrieved November 29, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Reinhard, Robert (November 8, 2016). "Kendall Hinton Out For Season, Will Apply For Medical Redshirt". SB Nation. Retrieved July 31, 2020.
- ^ Taylor, John (October 7, 2017). "Wake Forest taking on No. 2 Clemson without its starting QB". NBC Sports College Football. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
- ^ "Kendall Hinton's performance against Clemson adds intrigue to the QB position at Wake Forest". accsports.com. October 9, 2017. Retrieved July 31, 2020.
- ^ "Wake Forest suspends 2 for 3 games, including top QB Hinton". USA Today. Associated Press. June 14, 2018. Retrieved July 31, 2020.
- ^ "Wake Forest's Kendall Hinton to serve as backup QB after 3-game ban". ESPN.com. Associated Press. September 18, 2018. Retrieved July 31, 2020.
- ^ O'Neill, Conor (March 2, 2019). "Kendall Hinton happy to return to Deacons – and Deacons happy for return of Kendall Hinton". Winston-Salem Journal. Retrieved July 31, 2020.
- ^ St. Clair, Ian (May 26, 2020). "Broncos roster review: Rookie receiver Kendall Hinton 15". Mile High Report. Retrieved July 31, 2020.
- ^ "2020 Draft Scout Kendall Hinton, Wake Forest NFL Draft Scout College Football Profile". draftscout.com. Retrieved December 26, 2022.
- ^ DiLalla, Aric (April 26, 2020). "Broncos agree to terms with seven college free agents". DenverBroncos.com. Retrieved July 31, 2020.
- ^ Heath, Jon (April 25, 2020). "Broncos signing undrafted free agent WR/QB Kendall Hinton". USA Today. Retrieved July 31, 2020.
- ^ DiLalla, Aric (September 5, 2020). "Broncos make series of transactions to reach 53-man roster limit". DenverBroncos.com. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
- ^ DiLalla, Aric (November 4, 2020). "Broncos place DE Shelby Harris on Reserve/COVID-19 list". DenverBroncos.com. Retrieved November 29, 2020.
- ^ "Broncos elevate WR Kendall Hinton to roster as COVID-19 Replacement". DenverBroncos.com. November 29, 2020. Retrieved November 29, 2020.
- ^ "Broncos to face Saints without QB Drew Lock, both backups after all were deemed high-risk contacts". NFL.com. November 28, 2020. Retrieved November 29, 2020.
- ^ Smith, Michael David (November 29, 2020). "Broncos practice squad receiver Kendall Hinton to start at quarterback". ProFootballTalk. Retrieved November 29, 2020.
- ^ DiLalla, Aric (November 29, 2020). "Look beyond the stat line. Kendall Hinton's performance vs. Saints was worthy of applause". www.denverbroncos.com. Retrieved November 30, 2020.
- ^ "Broncos' Kendall Hinton: Shifts back to practice squad". CBSSports.com. November 30, 2020. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
- ^ DiLalla, Aric (January 4, 2021). "Broncos sign 10 players to future contracts". DenverBroncos.com. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
- ^ DiLalla, Aric (August 31, 2021). "Broncos make series of roster transactions to reach 53-man limit". DenverBroncos.com. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
- ^ DiLalla, Aric (September 1, 2021). "Broncos sign 14 players to their practice squad". DenverBroncos.com. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
- ^ DiLalla, Aric (September 14, 2021). "Broncos place CB Ronald Darby, WR Jerry Jeudy on IR". DenverBroncos.com. Archived from the original on November 23, 2021. Retrieved January 6, 2022.
- ^ "Mile High Morning: Kendall Hinton's evolution continues as he scores first career TD vs. Steelers". www.denverbroncos.com. Retrieved January 19, 2022.
- ^ DiLalla, Aric (August 30, 2022). "Broncos make series of roster moves to reach 53-player limit". DenverBroncos.com.
- ^ DiLalla, Aric (August 31, 2022). "Josh Johnson, Kendall Hinton among 13 players signed to Broncos' practice squad". DenverBroncos.com.
- ^ "Kendall Hinton: Back on Denver's practice squad". CBSSports.com. September 19, 2022.
- ^ DiLalla, Aric (October 10, 2022). "Broncos promote WR Kendall Hinton to active roster, place three players on injured reserve". DenverBroncos.com. Retrieved January 28, 2023.
- ^ Kelberman, Zack (July 28, 2023). "Broncos Sign WR Michael Bandy, Activate Kendall Hinton from PUP". Mile High Huddle. Sports Illustrated. Retrieved July 28, 2023.
- ^ Heath, John. "Broncos WR Kendall Hinton among early roster cuts". BroncosWire. Retrieved August 27, 2023.
- ^ https://www.nfl.com/players/kendall-hinton/stats/ [bare URL]