DeAndre Hopkins to visit receiver-needy Titans after release by Cardinals
Prior to his release by the Arizona Cardinals, DeAndre Hopkins revealed a list of five quarterbacks with whom he would like to play. For his first free-agent visit, Hopkins is going to a team not featured among that group.
Hopkins, a three-time All-Pro whom the Cardinals released May 26, will be flying to Nashville on Sunday for a visit early next week with the Tennessee Titans, coach Mike Vrabel confirmed Wednesday. Hopkins, 31, had played on the Texans while Vrabel was an assistant in Houston, from 2014-17. Current Titans offensive coordinator Tim Kelly was also on the Texas for several years while Hopkins was there. Kelly eventually rose to become the Texans' offensive coordinator in 2019, the season in which Hopkins earned his third-consecutive All-Pro honor.
"We want players that want to be here. We'll work through anything else," Vrabel said at a news conference Wednesday. "DeAndre will be somebody we bring in … and we'll go through the same visit we go through with everybody, and then we'll start the process."
Hopkins has been in the NFL 10 seasons and has been one of the most productive receivers in that span. He has hauled in 853 receptions for 11,298 yards with 71 touchdown grabs, though injuries and a suspension for the first six games of last season over a violation of the league's policy on performance-enhancing drugs have limited his production in the last two years.
On May 22, four days before Arizona released him, Hopkins appeared on the "I AM ATHLETE" podcast and listed five quarterbacks he would prefer to play with: Lamar Jackson of the Baltimore Ravens, Josh Allen of the Buffalo Bills, Jalen Hurts of the Philadelphia Eagles, Patrick Mahomes of the Kansas City Chiefs and Justin Herbert of the Los Angeles Chargers.
"What I want is stable management upstairs," Hopkins said on the podcast. "I think that’s something I haven’t really had the past couple years of my career coming from Houston and then to Arizona. I’ve been through three or four GMs in my career, so a stable management. A QB who loves the game, a QB who brings everybody on board with him and pushes not just himself but everybody around him. And a great defense. A great defense wins championships."
Notably, the Titans struggled last season, going 7-10 in a winnable AFC South. They finished second in the division and failed to make the playoffs, snapping a run of three consecutive trips and two consecutive division titles.
Also notably, Tennessee features veteran Ryan Tannehill at quarterback, though the team also brought on rookie Will Levis with a second-round pick in April after selecting Malik Willis in the third round of the 2022 NFL draft. While Tannehill has been serviceable at times during his career, he is nowhere near the caliber of player that Hopkins listed on the podcast.
Tannehill threw for 2,536 yards and 13 touchdowns against six interceptions last season in 12 games.
The Titans also have a significant need for assistance at wide receiver, as the team does not return a player who had more than 450 receiving yards last year.
"That's something that I can't control. He's an awesome player, great player," Treylon Burks, who is expected to be the Titans' No. 1 wide receiver in 2023, said Wednesday. "It'd be fun to play with him. So if we end up getting him, we get him. If we don't, we don't.
"No offense to him, he's a great player, but I like playing with who we have here."
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: DeAndre Hopkins to visit receiver-needy Tennessee Titans
