After leaving his Titans meeting without a deal, DeAndre Hopkins continues to explore his options. While he may well continue to wait on the right offer following his Patriots visit, the sides will huddle up for a multi-day summit.
Hopkins’ Pats visit will begin later today and extend through Thursday. Though New England is not known to splurge for wide receiver help, Hopkins’ value has certainly dropped compared to where it was when he locked down his Cardinals extension three years ago.
This might not be an exploratory visit to merely gauge Hopkins’ market, per The Athletic’s Jeff Howe, who notes some optimism exists the sides can use this meeting to hammer out an agreement (subscription required). Tension between Hopkins and new Patriots OC Bill O’Brien may be in the past as well, with ESPN’s Dianna Russini adding no animosity remains between the two ex-Texans (Twitter link). Amid his woeful period in the Texans’ GM role, O’Brien pulled the trigger on trading Hopkins to Arizona in March 2020.
The Patriots have not been shy about acquiring proven pieces at receiver under Bill Belichick. In the years since the Randy Moss and Wes Welker trades, New England has traded for Brandin Cooks, Josh Gordon, Mohamed Sanu and DeVante Parker and signed the likes of Danny Amendola, Antonio Brown, Nelson Agholor, Kendrick Bourne and JuJu Smith-Schuster. That said, the lone eight-figure-per-year payment the team authorized in this bunch — the two-year, $22MM Agholor deal — did not pan out. Smith-Schuster signed for three years and $25.5MM ($16MM guaranteed). The Pats also bailed on Cooks and Deion Branch via trade rather than sign up for a big-ticket contract.
Hopkins is not aiming to take a steep discount from his Cardinals pact, which would have paid him $19.45MM in 2023. Odell Beckham Jr.‘s $15MM Ravens guarantee has come up a few times during Hopkins’ free agency. Multiple evaluators pegged Hopkins’ value in the $8-$10MM-per-year range, SI.com’s Albert Breer noted during an NBC Sports Boston appearance (video link). This could also include incentives to move the money toward that $19MM-plus mark. Anything close to $19MM at this juncture remains highly unrealistic, and the Pats ponying up approximately $10MM for a player coming off two injury-plagued seasons — and a 2022 PED suspension — should certainly not be considered a lock.
But even as Buffalo and Kansas City lingered as the early favorites, New England hovered as a team to watch. Those rumors leading to this visit with a player Belichick has long viewed in high regard points to genuine interest. The team holds $14.8MM in cap space, which checks in at 14th as of Wednesday morning.
I imagine BB would not be adverse to a pre-emptive strike against Buffalo by signing Hopkins. The continued development of their young QB will go easier if they acquire some receiver weapons.