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DeAndre Hopkins has been one of the biggest names to follow during most of the 2023 NFL offseason. He was shockingly released by the Arizona Cardinals, immediately making him an unrestricted free agent. The veteran superstar figured to have a relatively large market of interested teams, including at least two that offered him a new contract for the upcoming season.
The wide receiver eventually decided to sign with the Tennessee Titans on a two-year contract worth up to a maximium of $32 million, including various incentives. He will reportedly earn a base salary of $12 million during the 2023 NFL season, which increases to $14 million for the second year of his deal. Each of the two years also come with up to $3 million in added incentive bonuses.
According to Albert Breer, the New England Patriots offered DeAndre Hopkins a similarly valued contract, but with a much different overall structure. They were allegedly willing to match the Titans' of up to $15 million in total value for the upcoming 2023 NFL season. The apparent issue is that they wanted to make the deal much more incentive-based and thus offered $12 million as a base salary.
The Patriots have spent the 2023 NFL offseason making major changes to their wide receivers. They moved on from Jakobi Mayers, their top receiver last year, and replaced him by signing JuJu Smith-Schuster in free agency. Their attempt at signing Hopkins could have potentially tranformed their pass-catchers from a relative weakness to a major strength.
Hopkins instead decided to sign a contract with the Titans, who apparently gave him a more financially stable offer. Like the Patriots, the Titans were also in desparate need of upgrading their wide receivers as they severely struggled in the passing game last year.
DeAndre Hopkins can solve a major problem for the Titans
The Tennessee Titans were one of the worst passing offenses in the entire NFL last year during the 2022 season. They averaged just 171.4 passing yards per game, the third-fewest, leading only the Chicago Bears and Atlanta Falcons. Their lack of reliable receiving weapons is one of the main reasons why.
Robert Woods proved incapable of being a top option and the inexperienced Treylon Burks struggled with injuries. DeAndre Hopkins has been the top wide receiver for his team his entire career, including with the Houston Texans and Arizona Cardinals. He will be so again with the Titans, finally giving them a legitimate replacement after trading away AJ Brown last year.
