News & Info/Headlines

Reports: DeAndre Hopkins Expected To Sign With Titans
It appears DeAndre Hopkins has found his new home.

The Tennessee Titans are expected to sign the three-time All-Pro wide receiver to a two-year, $26 million contract, NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported Sunday.

Following his release from the Cardinals at the end of May, Hopkins chose Tennessee as the spot of his first free-agent visit, a meeting that occurred on June 11. Despite later meeting with the Patriots, the Titans proved too good an opportunity.

The Hopkins signing is new general manager Ran Carthon's first major get of his tenure in Tennessee, and it goes a long way in filling the void felt last season after the club traded A.J. Brown during the 2022 NFL Draft.

Although Hopkins has missed 15 contests the past two seasons due to a six-game suspension and various injuries, he remains a difference maker at 31 years of age. In the 19 games he did play over that span, he collected 106 catches for 1,289 yards and 11 touchdowns, consistently creating separation and making acrobatic contested catches when space didn't exist.

Across his 10-year career, he has 853 receptions for 11,298 yards and 71 touchdowns, plus five Pro Bowls. All but one of those Pro Bowl campaigns came with the Texans, the team he will now face twice a year as a rival.

As NFL.com's Bobby Kownack suggests, Hopkins immediately becomes Tennessee's most dangerous wideout upon signing.

It's worth noting Hopkins had some of the best seasons of his career with current Titans offensive coordinator Tim Kelly on the offensive staff of the Texans.

SI.com's Tyler Rowland reminded readers that Kelly joined the Texans in Hopkins' second season in the NFL. Kelly rose from quality control to position coach to offensive coordinator by 2019.

The one year Kelly served as Hopkins' offensive coordinator was also the last season Hopkins made first team All-Pro. Hopkins was electric that season and put up 104 catches, 1,165 yards and seven touchdowns.

The odds of Hopkins duplicating that performance nearly four seasons later is reasonably low, but if anyone knows how to put Hopkins in the best position to succeed it is Kelly.

Hopkins also knows Mike Vrabel is a good coach and he has said so himself, but knowing that he also has someone he can rely on to get him the ball and know where he can do his job the best has to be something that crosses his mind during the decision making process.

Hopkins' presence should also help expedite the development of Treylon Burks, who the Titans drafted to replace Brown in the first round last year.

Burks struggled for parts of his rookie season, dealing with limitations from asthma throughout the offseason program and struggling to shine in an oft-stagnant Tennessee offense. He finished the year with 33 receptions for 444 yards and one touchdown in 11 games.

With Hopkins in the fold, those two will form the main focal point of the club's passing offense.

For fantasy managers, the expectation should be that Hopkins remains in the WR2 range while Burks slips outside the WR3 range he crept into in recent weeks. That doesn't mean the second-year man can't outperform that cost, but much will depend on the quarterback situation.

Ryan Tannehill is the incumbent starter, but he appears to be a lame-duck quarterback at best heading into his age-35 season with no guaranteed money left on his contract. Last year's third-round pick, Malik Willis, and Will Levis, this year's No. 33 overall selection, will also by vying for the spot.

Hopkins should help elevate whoever rises to the top, and his arrival also bolsters the Titans' chances of wresting back the AFC South from the Jacksonville Jaguars.