Ravens' DeAndre Hopkins Remains Grateful Despite Rocky Season

"This offseason, I could've went to some different teams and got more money than I did here. But at this point in my career, I wanna play with somebody who I consider a friend off the field."

Relationships with the Ravens

Hopkins has tasted more personal glory than most in carving out a receiving career that'll require some real thought out of the Hall of Fame voting committee.

The former Houston Texans star spent the mid-late 2010s as arguably the best receiver in the sport, but even since transitioning into a veteran journeyman in recent years, he's never lost his world-class hands.

The steady presence that analysts figured would factor in to a semi-coaching role, but he's come through with some much-needed downfield reliability. Zay Flowers remains the top wide receiver on the Ravens' depth chart, and his penchant for drops and errors have contrasted comfortably with Hopkins' big play presence. Even though he only has 18 catches to his name in Baltimore, he's prevailed as Jackson's favorite pure-deep threat with a career-high 16.1 yards per reception.

Flowers made a few mistakes in that Bengals win, but he also staked a big return to the end zone for his first touchdown in three months, and Hopkins sounded proud of the receiver a decade his junior. "Me seeing Zay have one of his best careers [years], that gives me a joy," he said.

That willingness to sacrifice the usual-gaudy numbers to which he'd grown accustomed just to savor another year of NFL football next to players he admires is what makes Hopkins such a prized veteran. He's seen plenty across his travels, making it as far as the Super Bowl in his previous campaign with the Kansas City Chiefs, and though the Ravens offered a realistic gasp at one more winning situation, he's made a point to prioritize the relationships that fill the time between the snaps above all else.