“What I want is stable management upstairs, and that’s something I haven’t really had the last two years of my career coming from Houston and then to Arizona,” Hopkins said. “A QB who loves the game, a QB who gets everyone together, not just himself but everyone around him…and a great defense. A great defense that wins championships.”
Hopkins, who was acquired in 2020 along with a fourth-round second-round pick behind David Johnson and a future fourth-round pick, had a stellar first season. He had a franchise record – 115 catches for 1,407 yards and six touchdowns while earning second team All-Pro honors.
In his sophomore season, he missed seven games with a hamstring and then a knee injury, though he still recorded eight hits in 10 games on 42 snaps for 572 yards. His third season was marred before it even started when he was suspended for the first six games of 2022 after testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs.
He played well in the nine games after his return, making 64 catches for 717 yards and three TDs, but his numbers suffered when the Cardinals suffered quarterback injuries, and Hopkins then sat out the last two games of the season with concerns about his knee.
Hopkins only missed two games in his first eight seasons.
With Hopkins gone, the Cardinals’ No. 1 wide receiver is now the Hollywood Browns, with Rondale Moore, Zach Pascal, Greg Dortch, and third quarterback Michael Wilson named next options on the depth chart.