My Two Cents: DeAndre Hopkins Approaching 1,000 Yards, Was Great Addition Despite Lack of Wins

DeAndre Hopkins is just 61 yards shy of reaching 1,000 yards for the seventh time in his career, and he's been a great addition to the Tennessee Titans this year, despite the lack of wins. The veteran has done everything expected of him, and they need to do their best to keep him around in 2024.

NASHVILLE — When DeAndre Hopkins was a free agent this summer, it was something of a surprise that he decided to come to the Tennessee Titans instead of a team with legitimate Super Bowl aspirations. 

But it's worked out for all involved, with one exception. It's a glaring exception, of course, and that one thing is that the Titans haven't won more with him in the lineup.

But that doesn't mean his presence hasn't been valuable. The Titans are better for it. He's got 939 yards of receptions and is on the verge of his seventh 1,000-yard season in his 11-year career.

And when he gets there, it'll be just the 11th such season in Titans history since the franchise moved to Nashville.

That's how rare this is — and how good he's been, especially when you consider all the flaws in the Titans offense, the awful offensive line and less-than-average quarterback play.

"Yeah, I mean, he's been everything that we've wanted,'' Titans coach Mike Vrabel said of Hopkins. "I know that he wishes — and we all would — wish that things were different and that we would have won more games up until this point. 

"But I appreciate his attitude, his willingness, his competitiveness each and every week. We'll find ways to hopefully have him help us this week and moving forward.''

In Hopkins' first six games with the Titans when veteran quarterback Ryan Tannehill at the helm, he didn't have a single touchdown catch and just one game with more than 65 yards worth of receptions.

It all changed when rookie quarterback Will Levis took over after the bye week. In the win over Atlanta on Oct. 29, Levis threw four touchdown passes in his NFL debut, three of them to Hopkins. He's had three more touchdown receptions since, including one in the thrilling comeback in Miami against the Dolphins.

He and Levis had eight games together, and they did a lot of good things. They've also done their fair share of getting after each other, with some high-profile sideline blow-ups. It's good for growth, I suppose. Hopkins has said he thinks Levis is going to be a star in this league. Levis has talked often about all he's learned from Hopkins.

That alone has made his signing — a two-year deal worth $26 million — worth every dollar. Helping Levis grow as an NFL quarterback is paramount.

"Well, I think that that's something that's been there. I think early on, they've had conversations— and again, Hop's played a lot of years and he's seen a lot of different coverages and things happen out there. 

"So, the most important thing is that those guys are on the same page. There's nothing more important than that relationship. If I'm a receiver, I'm going to make sure that the quarterback knows where I'm going to be. So, I think that they've worked hard on that. We'll see, hopefully they can do that this week.''

Hopkins has also been a great locker room presence. The other Titans receivers — all very young and still learning the pro game, too — have soaked in knowledge from him. 

They still get to see greatness in the 31-year-old receiver. Here's Hopkins' history of 1,000-yard seasons.

DeAndre Hopkins' 1,000-yard seasons

Hopkins topped 1,000 yards in six of his first 10 seasons in the NFL, but none since 2020. His best year was in 2018, when he caught 1,572 yards worth of passes. Here are the stats from his six 1,000-yard seasons. 

Year	Team	Catches	Yards	TDs
2014	Houston	76	1,210	6
2015	Houston	111	1,521	11
2017	Houston	96	1,378	13
2018	Houston	115	1,572	11
2019	Houston	104	1,165	7
2020	Arizona	115	1,407	6

Since moving to Nashville, the Titans have had 10 pass catchers top 1,000 yards. Five were receivers — A.J. Brown, Nate Washington, Drew Bennett, Kendall Wright and Derrick Mason — and there was one tight end, Delanie Walker. Mason did it the most, with four seasons over 1K.

Here's the complete list of 1,000-yard receivers in Titans history. 

Year	Player	Catches	Yards	TD's
2020	A.J. Brown	70	1,075	11
2019	A.J. Brown	52	1,051	8
2015	Delanie Walker	94	1,088	6
2013	Kendall Wright	94	1,079	2
2011	Nate Washington	74	1,023	7
2004	Drew Bennett	80	1,247	11
2004	Derrick Mason	90	1,168	7
2003	Derrick Mason	95	1,303	8
2002	Derrick Mason	79	1,102	5
2001	Derrick Mason	73	1,128	9

Hopkins has been fun to be around all season, too. He's a pro, and knows the routine. He's always been a great interview, and fun to chat with mid-week when available.

We had some fun earlier in the year prior to the start of the season. I've had a couple of kids go to Florida State, so there's a football rooting interest there for me. I wore an FSU polo to practice one day, and Hopkins — a Clemson grad — called me out about it. He called it a ''poor choice'' and laughed that it probably shouldn't happen again.

I only have one orange shirt — and living here in Tennessee for the past two years, I simply refuse to wear it — but I did to the next practice and Hopkins got a big laugh out of that. And every meeting since then has always been met with a smile. I love having him around.

Having Hopkins around makes Levis a better quarterback. I know $14 million is a lot of money, but I hope the Titans keep him around in 2024. They're building around Levis now, and have a ton of salary cap space in the offseason.

This can be a quick turnaround for the 5-10 Titans, if they make the right decisions. That should start with keeping Hopkins around, and building around him, too. 

It would be good for all involved.

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