DeAndre Hopkins’ future landing spot has been a major talking point over the last few days with the New England Patriots grouped into the teams expected to pursue the former five-time Pro Bowler on the open market.
That chatter might grow even louder after SI.com’s Albert Breer guessed at a number for a possible contract projection for Hopkins.
Breer wrote:
My guess would be that the market bears something around half of what he would’ve made on his now terminated deal in 2023, with some incentives to get him closer to being whole. But at this juncture of the offseason, even getting there could be a challenge.
Hopkins was on a $19.45 million base salary with the Cardinals, which would make his next deal a little under $10 million, assuming the projection even holds up when he starts talking to interested teams.
The Patriots are clearly in a position to make room for the former All-Pro wideout at that price, but they surely won’t be the only ones. That number could start increasing the moment multiple teams get involved.
Hopkins might not get premium money this late in the offseason, but he’ll likely receive enough attention to have options as well. Only time will tell if the Patriots end up being the team chosen.