NFL executives have shed some light on the reasons teams did not want to trade for DeAndre Hopkins before he was released.
Hopkins is considered to be one of the best wide receivers in the league but, according to Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer, who has spoken to a few execs, it appears he isn’t that highly rated by league front offices, though some landing spots are rumored to have emerged on the back of last week’s developments.
A veteran team exec is of the view that the wide receiver has lost his speed. “He can’t run anymore,” the unnamed official was quoted as saying.
It wasn’t all bad, though, with another exec pointing to the qualities the 30-year-old retains as he talked up Hopkins’ ability to make difficult catches in coverage.
“He’s still a good player. Good route runner, big, physical target that can play a ball in the air. He’s still a threat.”
Another alluded to the player’s catching prowess but noted that he isn’t able to create that separation from defenders anymore and is no longer a threat from deep positions.
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“Still great hands, he is not going to separate, not much of a deep threat, but very strong, and makes contested catches as well as anyone in the NFL.”
To be fair to Hopkins, there’s not a huge need to create separation if he can still make the catch under pressure. But there are also concerns regarding his commitment to practice, as well as the off-field drama he’s known to bring.
“Does not love to practice—I can’t imagine that’ll get any better. And when things don’t go well, you’re always gonna be leery, All right, what kind of drama are we gonna get from this guy? When things are great, he’s great. When things go south, his true colors show a little bit.”
That same exec did admit Hopkins never cheats the fans on game day and gives his all when he’s on the field, however.
“But he always shows up on game day,” they added. “He’s gonna have to go to a team that knows what they’re getting. You cannot expect a perfect-attendance type of worker.”
