DeAndre Hopkins has been the subject of trade rumors for several months, but the Arizona Cardinals do not seem to have plans to deal the receiver.
Hopkins’ name came up from reporters on draft day. Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio even said that the Cardinals were talking about trading Hopkins to Tennessee.
Hearing Cardinals are trying to send No. 3 overall and DeAndre Hopkins to Titans for No. 11 pick plus more.
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) April 27, 2023
The rumors led to Cardinals GM Monti Ossenfort being asked by reporters Thursday whether Hopkins might be traded. Ossenfort said he didn’t foresee Hopkins being traded during the draft. The new GM also said Hopkins could play for the Cardinals this season.
#AZCardinals GM Monti Ossenfort said on a possible DeAndre Hopkins trade during the draft, "I don't foresee that happening."
Could D-Hop play in Arizona this year? Ossenfort said yes.
"DeAndre is a Cardinal."
— Darren Urban (@Cardschatter) April 28, 2023
Hopkins has a $30.7 million cap hit for 2023 and $26.2 million cap hit in 2024. If the Cardinals were looking to save some money and plan for another high draft pick next year, then trading Hopkins would make sense. But if they’re looking to build and compete, then they might want to keep Hopkins to give themselves the best chance of winning.
Based on what they did in the first round by selecting offensive lineman Paris Johnson Jr., it seems like the Cardinals are doing their best to protect Kyler Murray — and perhaps give him the best receiving weapons.
