Getty DeAndre Hopkins could be a trade target for the Bears during the 2023 offseason.
The trade rumors connecting the Buffalo Bills to star wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins have been smoldering for months, but one insider believes they are now entirely extinguished.
The Bills had been named as a top potential suitor for Hopkins as he hit the trade block, and Bills star Von Miller hinted that Hopkins may have preferred Buffalo as a destination. But there are no indications that the teams are moving forward on any kind of trade, and Jay Skurski of the Buffalo News believes it will most likely never happen.
In a mailbag column published on May 13, he wrote that the cap-strapped Bills would never be able to afford adding Hopkins to the roster.
“The financial hurdle, in my mind, is unsurmountable,” he wrote. “Hopkins simply costs too much money, and the Bills would have to perform some serious salary cap gymnastics to make his current deal work. That’s if Hopkins were to play on his current deal. Chances are, if he’s traded, he’s going to want a new contract.”
DeAndre Hopkins Could Fit Culture, But Not Financials
A reader asked Skurski whether Hopkins might be a poor fit for the culture that Bills head coach Sean McDermott has created in Buffalo, noting Hopkins’ “suspension and past rifts with coaches.” Skurski said he does not believe that these points would stop a trade.
“The Bills have a strong leadership group in place,” Skurski wrote. “I don’t think they would be worried about Hopkins upsetting the chemistry in the locker room, especially if they feel like he can help them win. As we know, winning tends to cure a lot of those chemistry problems.”
.@REALPACMAN24 on the @PatMcAfeeShow, #Bills and DeAndre Hopkins (@DeAndreHopkins) are a real possibility.
But the Buffalo News reporter noted that it would ultimately be Hopkins’ salary that prevents the teams from making a deal.
Uncertain Future for DeAndre Hopkins
Hopkins doesn’t seem to know what will come next for him. In a March 8 appearance on the “Pat McAfee Show,” the Pro Bowl receiver acknowledged that he could be moved at any time, but didn’t know the destination.
“I would love to give you as much information as I can, but right now, we have just been keeping our head down,” Hopkins said. “Obviously we are paying attention to the headlines and tabloids, because you’ve got to. When you hear some of those trade rumors, you would hate to think that all of those things are lies. I’ve been traded before and heard speculation about it and kind of shooed it off and I was like, ‘Nah, the Texans would never trade me.’ Next thing you know, here I am with the Cardinals.”
While the rumors connecting Hopkins to the Bills have been ongoing, the Bills have been working to upgrade their wide receiving corps. After losing veterans from last year’s roster — with Cole Beasley, Jamison Crowder and Jake Kumerow hitting free agency and Isaiah McKenzie being released — they have also made additions to add playmakers. They signed speedy receiver and kick returner Deonte Harty and former Miami Dolphins pass catcher Trent Sherfield. The Bills also added talented tight end Dalton Kincaid in the first round of the recently completed NFL Draft.