The pros and cons of DeAndre Hopkins trade for KC Chiefs

The cons of a DeAndre Hopkins trade

Let’s get to the sticking point(s) for anyone who is shaking their heads at this deal. And yes, there are plural issues here when it comes to bringing DeAndre Hopkins in for the Kansas City Chiefs.

First, the overall context of the Chiefs seems to work against the idea of a trade for Hopkins. The Chiefs are in the midst of a youth movement with two successive draft classes with 10 or more selections each. The Chiefs imported an entirely new secondary last year, and there are other roster spots that need a similar influx of young, cost-controlled talent—key areas like edge rusher and offensive tackle.

The Chiefs were able to gain those extra draft assets because they traded Hill to the Dolphins last year for extra picks in the 2022 and 2023 NFL Draft. Part of the stated reasons for trading away Hill to South Florida was due to the fact that he wanted to be paid like the highest-paid wide receiver in the game. The Chiefs only went so high, and the Dolphins were willing to go higher (along with other teams like the Jets). Consequently, the Chiefs cashed him in for the picks, for better or worse.

What sense would it make for the Chiefs to trade away one of the NFL’s best wide receivers only to trade for one who is older with more injury concerns?

Herein lies our other concerns. Hopkins is now into his thirties, and we’ve seen other high-profile receivers change teams in recent years only to fail to live up to their reputation with their new teams because they hit the wall. Julio Jones is one great example of a player once included on a list of the game’s elite who hasn’t been able to put it together after enduring a couple of injuries in recent seasons.

Speaking of injuries, Hopkins has ended the last two seasons with injuries, including a knee injury this year and an MCL issue in 2021. Due to a suspension as well, Hopkins has only played in 19 games over the last two seasons, and it seems odd to believe that will trend any differently as he gets older.

Hopkins is also reportedly wanting a new deal with any new team since what’s left on his current deal is far below market value–at least for elite WRs. Is he worth that? Right now, he’s got two years left on his current deal for around $34 million. Should a new team feel comfortable going beyond that?

Finally, it also needs to be said that quarterback Patrick Mahomes is the rising tide that raises all boats. Remember Mahomes just had an MVP campaign even after losing his top wide receiver. Veach went discount shopping at the position and brought in some interesting yet more one-dimensional parts in free agency and the Chiefs offense was still one of the best in the league.

When looking at all of these concerns, for some fans, it just doesn’t make sense to chase a player like Hopkins at this stage of his career. Then again…