Five-time Pro Bowl wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins remains unsigned after he was released by the Arizona Cardinals back in late May.
One of the top NFL free agents on the board heading into training camp, Hopkins has been linked to multiple teams. That includes the New England Patriots.
The star 31-year-old pass-catcher recently talked about when he might hang up his cleats after two down seasons in the desert. He did not hold back in talking about retirement.
“I’ll retire from football when I’m not a 1k-yard receiver,” Hopkins said (h/t NBC Sports). “With that said, I was on pace for 1,400 yards last year—one significant injury in 11 years. I might be playing till I’m 37 the way I feel.”
For the sake of clarity, Hopkins has not recorded a 1,000-yard season since back in 2020. He missed seven games due to injury in 2021 before being suspended six games to open the 2022 campaign after violating the NFL’s Performance Enhancing Drug Policy (PED).
Despite this, Hopkins’ pace each of those two seasons would have taken him over the 1,000-yard plateau. Prior to 2023, the former first-round pick from Clemson had put up triple-digit yards in six of his first eight NFL seasons.
DeAndre Hopkins stats (career): 853 receptions, 11,298 yards, 71 TD
For the vast majority of his career, Hopkins has been among the most-productive wide receivers in the game.
Regardless of his landing spot, ‘Nuke firmly believes that he can reach that level again moving forward.
In addition to the Patriots, DeAndre Hopkins has been linked to the likes of the Kansas City Chiefs and Baltimore Ravens during the latter stages of NFL free agency leading up to training camps starting later this month.