We haven’t seen this kind of rant on practice since Allen Iverson’s famous comments in 2002. On Wednesday, Arizona Cardinals wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins defended his practice habits
Hopkins has come under fire for missing a number of practices this season, but it hasn’t hurt him as he has 1,324 yards and was named to his fifth Pro Bowl on Monday.
Hopkins has missed 18 out of 41 practices.
Hopkins has yet to miss a game in his first season with the Cardinal, which is why he blamed the local media for fueling the criticism of his practice schedule, saying his grandfather monitors the local sports shows and reports any negative comments to Hopkins.
“Yeah, man, I’ve heard a lot of a lot of negativity about me not practicing when I first came to Arizona,” he said. “I don’t watch the Arizona local news and channels and the sports station, but my grandfather, he’s an avid listener to everything and every single one. I think, if one of you guys say something bad about me, my grandfather, he’s told me. So, I’ve seen all the blogs and all this stuff, I’m pretty sure some of you guys might have been in there egging it on, but I’m not gonna say any names.
“But, there’s a reason that I play football and they watch. And there’s a reason that people are in positions for a reason. So, I really didn’t listen to it. I don’t listen to it. I listen to my grandfather, and he was saying, ‘Man, Arizona, they really kind of on you right now because you’re not practicing and all the critics in the sports people,’ but, my grandfather knows who I am, also, and he knows how productive I am on that football field. And he knew what I was going through, and the people who are giving me stuff, they don’t know what I was going through or dealing with, and I don’t let my news, or really what’s going on with me, be publicized for the future.”
“And tell those people who say I don’t practice,” Hopkins said, “to come watch me play the game.”
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