Out Route: DeAndre Hopkins Spurns Patriots; New England's WR Plan?

The Tennessee Titans have reportedly agreed to terms with free-agent wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins, who rejected the offer made by the New England Patriots last month.

FOXBORO — The New England Patriots have apparently failed to secure what would have been the crown jewel of their 2023 offseason class of free-agent acquisitions. 

Five-time All Pro DeAndre Hopkins, per multiple Sunday afternoon reports, is signing two-year, $26 million (worth up to $32 million with incentives) contract with the Tennessee Titans. The deal is expected to be finalized within the next few days. ESPN additionally reported that the first year will carry a base salary of $12 million with incentives to get to $15 million.

With the whiff, New England will now field a receiving depth chart of JuJu Smith-Schuster, Kendrick Bourne, Tyquan Thornton, DeVante Parker, Tre Nixon, Demario Douglas, Kayshon Boutte and Ed Lee — as well as proficient pass-catching tight ends Hunter Henry and Mike Gesicki.

While many will view Hopkins failure to sign with New England as a miss for Bill Belichick and the front office — especially with just north of $18 million in available salary cap space — a Patriots Country source has revealed that the Pats brass is carrying a quiet confidence into training camp, and additionally into the regular season. The Patriots offense under Bill O’Brien has “made notable strides” from last season and such progress is expected to facilitate improved performance from Bourne, Thornton and Henry, while incorporating the additions of Smith-Schuster and Gesicki.

While it is a certainty that New England will thin the crowd at the position, either prior to or during training camp, it remains unclear as to whether they may part with a veteran receiver, or make a trim among their trio of rookies.

No matter the choice, the battle for the final receiver spot on the Pats 2023 roster is about to pick up in Foxboro.

Hopkins, who was released by the Arizona Cardinals earlier this offseason, had long been rumored to be of interest to the previously receiver-needy Patriots. In addition to New England, the Kansas City Chiefs, Buffalo Bills, Dallas Cowboys and Baltimore Ravens were among the most prominently mentioned to be in the mix of interested parties. Hopkins agreed to make his first free-agent visit with the Tennessee Titans, coached by former Patriot Mike Vrabel, on June 12. However, he left Nashville without having signed a contract. 

Arriving in the New England region just two days later, details on Hopkins’ meeting with the Pats brass remained scarce until MassLive reported later that afternoon that the visit was “positive for both parties.” Though he also left New England without having officially agreed to terms with the Pats, both sides remained optimistic regarding the possibility of reaching a deal. 

Unfortunately for Patriots fans, Hopkins will now be catching his passes from quarterback Ryan Tannehill in Music City. 

Hopkins has been named to five All-Pro teams throughout his 10-year career. He has topped the 1,000 receiving yards mark in six of those seasons, with 71 total touchdown receptions. In fact, some of Hopkins’ greatest successes on a football field came while being coached by O’Brien during their tenure with the Houston Texans.

Despite numerous rumors suggesting a contentious relationship between the pair, reports suggested that both O’Brien and Hopkins held no ill will toward each other, and thus were willing to work together once again in New England. In fact, O’Brien was reportedly quoted as being “plenty on board” when it came to reuniting with his former Houston pupil.

Hopkins now instantly upgrades a corps of Titans pass-catchers including receivers Treylon Burks, Kyle Philips and Chris Moore. With a combination of Hopkins at receiver and running back Derrick Henry, Tennessee’s offense will be much improved in 2023.

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 Follow Mike D’Abate on Twitter @mdabateNFL and Listen/Subscribe to his daily podcast: Locked On Patriots

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