Cleveland Browns analyst Tony Rizzo doesn’t think adding DeAndre Hopkins to the wide receiver room is necessarily in the Browns’ best interest, despite quarterback Deshaun Watson being all for it.
Hopkins was cut by the Arizona Cardinals at the end of May, the team announced on its Twitter account. The speculation immediately ramped up about where D-Hop would land and the Browns have definitely been in the mix.
In fact, at the annual Browns Foundation Golf outing, quarterback DeShaun Watson was asked about potentially picking up Hopkins and he gave his full-throated support, per the NFL’s Brad Stainbrook.
“Me and D-Hop, we just naturally talk. We’ve been talking since the Houston days … He’s always been a brother of mine since I was coming out of high school. Our connection, our relationship has always been great. And I know there’s a lot of things swirling around in the media about him possibly coming to Cleveland. For me, my answer to that is, of course we’d love to have him,” said Watson.
But Rizzo wonders if Hopkins’ “free spirit” personality is a good fit for the Browns.
Here’s what ESPN’s Tony Rizzo had to say on the matter:
Tony Rizzo Questions Whether the Browns Want to ‘Open Up That Can [of Worms]’ of Adding Hopkins’ Personality
As DeAndre Hopkins visits teams, @TheRealTRizzo wonders if it’s worth rocking the boat with what the #Browns currently have in the WR room.
On ESPN Cleveland on Tuesday, June 13, Rizzo said that first of all, he doesn’t think the Browns “are gonna pay him what he wants,” but maybe they could get him at a discount.
“If he goes all over, if he goes on this tour and he doesn’t get the number he wants, well then, maybe you get him at discounted price. That’s the only way I could see him coming here,” said Rizzo.
But he went on to say that he’s not sure they should sign him even at a discount.
“I also question whether the Browns want to open up that can [of worms] in their receiver room right now. They’ve got a good group, everybody gets along. Hopkins is said to be a bit of a free spirit. Not that he’s a bad locker room guy, but there are some people who feel like he would want to be the alpha dog in the receiver room right now and I don’t know how that would work here in Cleveland,” said Rizzo.
In the comments, one fan agreed with Rizzo, questioning whether Cleveland wants Hopkins’ “personality in the locker room.”
The fan wrote, “Do we really want his personality in the locker room? We just dodged a bullet with Perrion Winfrey’s shenanigans. Hopefully nothing more percolates out of that. But I trust our WR room, right now, I think it’s just about a Super Bowl-ready wide receiver corps. Truly.”
Tony Rizzo Appears to Have Changed His Tune From Early June
The comments about not wanting to rock the boat in the wide receiver room is a marked change from what Rizzo said on the matter on June 2.
“I’d take [Hopkins], man. I think the dude can still play. I think Deshaun wants him and that means I want him,” said Rizzo.
He added, “He’s one of the best receivers in the league, he’s got a relationsihp with my quarterback, why wouldn’t I take him? Amari Cooper is one high-ankle sprain from going down, then what? I would take D-Hop here right now, yes.”
This year will mark Hopkins’ 11th year in the league. Per NFL.com’s stats, he has amassed over 11,000 yards receiving and 71 touchdowns. He and Watson were on the Houston Texans together for three seasons, 2017-2019, and in that time, Hopkins had over 4000 yards and 31 touchdowns. He also had the two biggest seasons of his career in 2017 and 2018 — 2018 was his most yards ever in a single season and 2017 was his most touchdowns ever in a single season, though that was Watson’s rookie season and he only played in seven games.
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Browns Analyst Questions Going After DeAndre Hopkins