The Arizona Cardinals have long been rumored to make a trade of DeAndre Hopkins before or during April's NFL Draft, but it now appears that the market may have dwindled to an extent for the five-time Pro Bowler's services.
This past weekend, the Dallas Cowboys acquired Brandin Cooks in a trade with the Houston Texans, a move which was followed days later by the Cleveland Browns acquiring Elijah Moore in a trade with the New York Jets. Two teams that had varying amount of interest, now likely out of the running.
'Sports Illustrated''s Albert Breer is unconvinced that Hopkins will bring the Cardinals what they are asking for at this juncture.
"I don’t think it’ll be what they wanted initially. The ask had been a second-round pick and another asset. Based on indications I’ve gotten, that sort of return simply isn’t coming," Breer writes.
The insider does believe that the Cardinals could at least, maybe, recoup more for Hopkins than the Texans just got in exchange for the aforementioned Cooks, who went for a fifth-round pick and a future sixth-round pick. But that's around the neighborhood we might be talking, here.
Sportsnaut NFL insider Benjamin Allbright reported recently that the Cardinals wanted a second-round pick and change for Hopkins. That feels like a stretch unless a team is willing to overpay.
Breer's news nugget comes in a backdrop of possibly-heating-up talks between the Cardinals and other teams ahead of next month's draft.
Any team acquiring Hopkins would be on the hook for nearly $22 million in 2023, meaning that an extension would have to be worked out to fit the numbers.
While still considered a top-tier receiver in the NFL, Hopkins last put up a 1,000-yard season during the 2020-21 season. Since then, he missed seven games to injury in 2021-22 and was suspended for the first six games of last season for violating the NFL’s performance-enhancing drug (PED) policy.
The New England Patriots and Kansas City Chiefs are both teams which have been linked to Hopkins this offseason.
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