DeAndre Hopkins is about to start his 11th season with his third different team. The Titans now are connected to the Texans and the Cardinals.
The receiver moved to Tennessee in the final week of July, right before the Titans started training camp. The Cardinals cut him earlier in the summer. Arizona thought his contract was too expensive. Hopkins took official visits to Nashville and to Foxborough, Mass, to chat with the Patriots. And he placed calls to several teams, letting them know he was interested in playing for them.
Four teams didn’t call him back, including the Dallas Cowboys.
“Detroit Lions, they didn’t want me,” DeAndre Hopkins told GQ. “Dallas Cowboys didn’t want me. Giants didn’t want me. S--t. Who else ain’t want me? San Fran ain’t want me.”
And yes, Hopkins is keeping score. Back in the spring, when it seemed inevitable he’d be switching teams, Hopkins did a livestream via Instagram with friend and former Cowboy Dez Bryant. In the video, Hopkins appeared to drop hints that he’d like to relocate to suburban Dallas.
“What’s going on D, what’s going on Triple D? I keep hearing y’all say my name around here,” DeAndre Hopkins said. “What’s up? Talk to me.”
The Cowboys signed Brandin Cooks, who at 29, still is one of the fastest players in the NFL. They probably weren’t in the market for another receiver, especially one who would command a hefty contract.
But as the season starts, Hopkins still is bitter towards the quartet of teams that didn’t return his calls. “When you’re a player and some people feel like they’re great without you, and then you see what they have on paper, or you see what they do, you mark those games down, as a competitor,” Hopkins told GQ. “I can’t wait to play ’em and, honestly, try my best to crush they a--.”
Hopkins will need to wait at least another year. The Cowboys aren’t on the Titans schedule this regular season.
The 31-year-old Hopkins also wants to prove to the entire NFL that he still is the same dominant receiver. He wants to quiet questions about his durability. Hopkins definitely will be the No. 1 target for Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill. Tennessee signed Hopkins to a two-year contract worth $26 million, with incentives taking it to a possible $32 million.
“I don’t look at age, but it’s some of the reason some teams might’ve passed up on me,” DeAndre Hopkins said. “Their #1 DB would have a hard time against me on the island. … “It ain’t too many people out there that can say honestly that they can lock me down, guard me for a full four quarters.”
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