Is DeAndre Hopkins playing today? Latest on Chiefs WR for Fantasy Football Week 8 matchup vs Raiders

The Kansas City Chiefs traded for DeAndre Hopkins on Wednesday amid a season full of injuries among the wide receivers. The veteran arrived from Tennessee, where he spent the 2023 season and the first seven weeks of this one with the struggling Tennessee Titans.

Fans are wondering if Hopkins will be able to take the field this Sunday against the Las Vegas Raiders. According to The Athletic's Diana Russini, the expectation within the organization is that Hopkins will be available to play against the AFC West rivals.

On Wednesday, Russini posted to X, formerly known as Twitter:

"While the Titans and Chiefs continue to iron out the details of the trade, the Chiefs are expecting DeAndre Hopkins to land in Kansas City later today and the hope is to get him ready to play on Sunday against the Raiders, per sources."

In addition, Andy Reid made a telling comment about Hopkins' availability, via Ian Rapoport:

"Why wait, right?”

The Tennessee Titans couldn't get things going this season, the first under new head coach Brian Callahan, and are 1-6 this season, ranking last in the AFC South standings. The struggles on offense have affected Hopkins' performance, as the veteran caught 14 passes for 165 yards and only one touchdown.

His situation is completely different now, as the Chiefs are 6-0 and at the top of the division, despite suffering the losses of Marquise "Hollywood" Brown and Rashee Rice. JuJu Smith-Schuster suffered an injury in Week 6 that was aggravated when he started in Week 7, and has already been ruled out for this matchup. Having DeAndre Hopkins ready to go would do wonders for this team, but anything could happen before Sunday.

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Who will play if DeAndre Hopkins doesn't make his Chiefs debut this Sunday?

This is an exciting prospect for the Kansas City Chiefs, but if Hopkins isn't ready to face the Raiders, the team's top receivers would be Xavier Worthy, Justin Watson and Mecole Hardman.

The back-to-back Super Bowl champions have managed to get wins despite all the injuries, but having a player like Hopkins who can connect with Patrick Mahomes and make plays when the game is on the line, is a big win for Andy Reid.

This is probably the best situation DeAndre Hopkins has been in since he was drafted in 2013 from Clemson. He shared touches with Deshaun Watson on the Texans and Kyler Murray on the Cardinals, but having the chance to play with Patrick Mahomes is exciting for a player who was once considered the best receiver in the NFL.