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The Buffalo Bills have made some deliberate upgrades to their team this offseason, adding to their depth and making marginal improvements at skill positions while sticking to the strict budget that came through a lack of cap space.
One new trade idea would blow that strategy open, sending a massive haul of draft picks along with a budding defensive star in order to land wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins along with one of the top picks in the NFL draft. The Bills have been pegged as a frontrunner to land the Arizona Cardinals pass catcher, though there have not been any signs of movement on his market.
A trade idea shared on the NFL Network could change that.
Bills Could Ship Away Former 1st Round Pick to Land DeAndre Hopkins
The proposal, which was broken down by Zach Dimmit of SI.com’s Bills Central, would see the Bills moving both players and picks in order to land Hopkins.
The Bills would send defensive end Gregory Rousseau as well as their first- and second-round picks in this year’s NFL draft along with their first- and second-round picks in 2024. They would land not just Hopkins, but also the No. 3 overall pick in this year’s draft.
As Dimmit noted, trading Rousseau would add a significant piece to an already huge trade package.
“Last season, he tied Miller with a team-high eight sacks while adding a forced fumble and four passes defended,” he wrote. “At only 22-years-old, he’s likely set to hit even better marks in 2023 on a defense that gives opposing offenses multiple names to worry about.”
The trade would also be well above the reported asking price for Hopkins alone, and without a clear indication of what the Bills would do with the No. 3 overall pick. ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler said in March that the Cardinals were looking for a “Christian McCaffrey package” in exchange for Hopkins.
“Talking to other teams, they say that Arizona has wanted a second-round pick and more, maybe even as high as like a Christian McCaffrey package,” Fowler said on SportsCenter. “We’re talking second, third, fourth-round picks. They will probably have to come off that to deal Hopkins, who has got $19 million in salary due to him.”
Bills Could Go Another Route to Land DeAndre Hopkins
Other insiders have suggested that if the Bills don’t have an appetite for a blockbuster trade, Hopkins could eventually be available on the open market. In an appearance on the “Greg Bedard Podcast” posted on April 1, Sports Illustrated insider Albert Breer reported that the Cardinals could end up releasing Hopkins if they are unable to find a trade partner.
Given that the market for Hopkins has not been too hot, Breer said that could end up being a likely outcome.
“Some teams, Greg, think they’re (the Cardinals) gonna cut him. Think the Cardinals are gonna wind up cutting him,” Breer said. “His market — his market is not great right now. Even for a team say like Kansas City. Kansas City would need him to take a significant pay cut.”
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