Why Cardinals Could Still Move DeAndre Hopkins
We're quickly approaching the next state of the offseason where cleats begin to hit grass and the foundation of the upcoming year is laid through workouts, drills and team meetings.
Somehow, DeAndre Hopkins is still under contract with the Arizona Cardinals.
That's only a surprise when considering the massive amount of speculation and rumors surrounding his status with the team after the Cardinals reportedly made him available for trade at the very beginning of the offseason.
We're talking months of trade talk, dating back to Kliff Kingsbury hopping on that plane to Thailand and lasting up until the dying embers of the 2023 NFL Draft. There were reports that multiple teams had trade deals worked out with Arizona to land Hopkins on the first night of the draft - but those never came to fruition.
So here we are - in the middle of May - and Hopkins has yet to depart the desert.
The outside expectation now is that Hopkins stays for the upcoming season.
"I see everybody telling me to stay," said Hopkins on Instagram at the beginning of the month. "Who said I wanna go? Who said I wanted to leave? I'm out here working baby."
Cardinals GM Monti Ossenfort kept things short and sweet when asked during the draft on Hopkins' status.
"DeAndre is a Cardinal," Ossenfort said. "DeAndre is a Cardinal, and we're moving forward."
Many believed Hopkins' best opportunity to be moved was at the draft, as the Cardinals were primarily in search of picks for either 2023 or 2024 to help their rebuild really get going.
Arizona reportedly kept stern on their asking price of a second-round pick "and something else of value" - that's been a common theme for Arizona under Ossenfort's new regime. They've essentially done everything by the book and have stood firm during the early stages of the rebuild.
That's a big part of why Hopkins playing elsewhere in 2023 - his $30.75 million cap hit (second only behind Tyreek Hill at his position) simply doesn't make sense for a previously 4-13 Arizona squad that didn't get better from last season.
Combine that with Hopkins reportedly in search of a re-worked deal and wanting to compete for a Super Bowl while still being able to contribute, and it made sense for both sides to move on.
Yet Hopkins hasn't been moved - at least not yet.
The financial difference between cutting/trading Hopkins Pre and Post June 1 is significant, at least enough for the Cardinals to be okay with waiting through the opening stages of the offseason.
Pre June 1 Cut/Trade
Dead Money: $21.07 million
Cap Savings: $8.91 million
Post June 1 Cut/Trade
Dead Money: $10.53 million
Cap Savings: $19.45 million
As of now, the Cardinals currently have just north of $16 million in cap space according to OverTheCap. Hopkins departing would push that figure to nearly $36 million with a Post June 1 designation.
Teams can (and normally do) opt to roll that cap space over to the following year, which should position them nicely with their draft ammo for 2024.
NBC Sports' Mike Florio touched on this topic and said the Cardinals could potentially release Hopkins if they can't find a suitable trade partner.
"At this point, it makes sense for the Cardinals to wait until after June 1. That would split the $22.6 million cap charge in half between 2023 and 2024," said Florio.
"But the problem is, as recently noted by Albert Breer of SI.com, that no one wants to pick up his $19.45 million salary for 2023. Faced with that reality, Hopkins’s best move is to love the one he’s with, since the Cardinals remain willing, for now, to proceed with that salary.
"Of course, that doesn’t mean they’ll stay that way. If they can’t trade him, maybe the Cardinals will cut him. His salary is non-guaranteed. It becomes guaranteed, as a practical matter, as of Week One.
"Until then, the Cardinals risk that Hopkins will suffer an injury that will prevent them from cutting him, and that forces them to pay the money.
"So, yes, he’s still a Cardinal. Unless he’s willing to take less, he won’t be traded. If/when he’s cut, he’ll have a chance to get whatever the open market will pay him."
Even if Hopkins begins the season with Arizona, the trade deadline would again see plenty of rumors surrounding his name. Everybody tends to like their roster in the offseason, but when reality sets and you need another weapon to put your team over the top, Ossenfort and company will be waiting.
While the Cardinals surely want to squeeze some value out of Hopkins in terms of a trade, they ultimately have their attention fixated on the future, and Hopkins' departure bodes well in that timeline regardless if he's released or traded.
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