Don't like DeAndre Hopkins Asking Price? Blame the Ravens

Part of the reason DeAndre Hopkins was released rather than being traded was because of how the Baltimore Ravens addressed their wide receiver position.

There were multiple factors that led to the release of DeAndre Hopkins by the Arizona Cardinals. The calendar was one because the Cardinals didn't want to carry his dead money on 2024's salary cap, but the other was the Baltimore Ravens signing Odell Beckham. According to multiple reports, notably Tom Pelissero of NFL Network, Hopkins decided at that point he would not take less than Beckham.

The Ravens gave Beckham a one-year contract worth $15 million, all of which is guaranteed. That stunned much of the league and drew plenty of criticisms from both fans as well as other teams. At that time, the Cardinals had been talking with other teams about facilitating a deal for Hopkins. They would have had to eat some of his guaranteed money, but Hopkins also would've had to renegotiate his deal to facilitate the trade as no one was interested in carrying exorbitant salary.

Between the calendar and Hopkins' unwillingness to renegotiate his deal, the Cardinals opted to release him. Now a free agent, the market will dictate what Hopkins is worth but he's still determined to get top dollar. He recently hired an agent for the first time in his career to help him do just that.

The Cleveland Browns are one of four teams that have been labeled favorites to land the services of Hopkins along with the Buffalo Bills, Kansas City Chiefs and New England Patriots. It remains to be seen how much of the Browns interest is legitimate versus connecting dots between Hopkins and Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson, since the two played together for three seasons on the Houston Texans.

Browns general manager Andrew Berry is diligent and checks into everything, but that doesn't necessarily mean he's going to make a serious play. This offseason, outside of their pursuit of free agent defensive tackles on the first day of free agency, the Browns haven't really extended themselves. They've made cost efficient deals, some of which like Ogbonnia Okoronkwo and Ethan Pocic have drawn rave reviews from various outlets covering the league.

If Hopkins is indeed trying to maximize his value, certainly his prerogative, while still trying to land on a team he believes he can win, these other teams are in a game of chicken for his services. Maybe Hopkins doesn't get the deal Beckham got, but he's going to use teams as leverage against each other to try to get the best deal possible. The team that gets him may end up going off the cliff in the process, but it probably won't be Berry overextending himself to make that happen.

As head coach Kevin Stefanski noted at the Browns Foundation golf outing, "I really, really like our wide receiver room. I love the guys that are in there. Andrew and his crew are always looking at every avenue, so I won’t comment specifically on the player other than to say that I really like our roster.”