As we approach the 2023 NFL season, one big question looms: where will DeAndre Hopkins play this season? Hopkins is a five time All-Pro pass catcher and has recorded six seasons over 1,000 receiving yards. At 31 years old, he still has some gas in the tank and many teams are looking to add his explosiveness on the outside to bolster their offense. Here are three likely landing spots for Hopkins.
New England Patriots
Hopkins visited New England about two weeks ago, but left Foxborough without a deal. Personally, I think that New England is the best landing spot for Hopkins. In free agency, the Patriots added to their offense with JuJu Smith-Schuster and Mike Gesicki, but they’ve lacked a legitimate deep threat receiver since Mac Jones arrived in New England. With a relatively thin receiving core and minimal explosiveness, Hopkins could elevate the play of not just Mac Jones, but the entire Patriots offense. The Patriots have around 13 million in cap space and could ink Hopkins to a 2 year, 22 million dollar deal.
Tennessee Titans
The AFC South is ripe for a hostile takeover. While the Jaguars and Colts are solid and Houston is in a huge rebuild, no team is safe. Tennessee relies heavily on the run game as they ran the ball 55% of the time in 2022. Derrick Henry is obviously great, but since losing Jonnu Smith and A.J. Brown, their passing attack has sputtered. Reports coming out of Titans camp is that Ryan Tannehill is playing at a high level and if they want to maximize his play in his golden years then they need to sign Hopkins. He’d be their immediate WR1 the second he suits up in Nashville. Just like Hopkins in New England, he visited around two weeks ago, but left without a deal.
Buffalo Bills
Apparently the reason that Stefon Diggs is upset with the Bills is due to the fact that he restructured his contract so that Buffalo could sign Hopkins. Hopkins hasn’t signed with the Bills yet and this has led to Diggs becoming more frustrated. While the signing of Hopkins would take targets away from Diggs, it’d add another weapon for Josh Allen. Outside of Diggs, the Bills lack a serious second option in the pass game. All of the leagues really good teams have good receiving duos like Cincinnati, Philadelphia, and Miami. If Buffalo wants to get over the hump and win a Super Bowl, signing Hopkins could be key.