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Rumor has it that the Arizona Cardinals could be looking for as little as a second-round pick and a conditional pick in exchange for former All-Pro receiver DeAndre Hopkins, according to Mike Jurecki or the Arizona Football Daily podcast.
With that trade compensation in mind, Moe Moton of Bleacher Report put together a trade package for the Kansas City Chiefs that he believes could land them Hopkins.
Moton’s trade package:
Chiefs: DeAndre Hopkins
Cardinals: second-round pick, running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire
“I think [the Chiefs] are done with Clyde Edwards-Helaire,” Moton said in a Bleacher Report video on March 9. “There have been some trade rumors around his name. It’s been said that they aren’t going to pick up his fifth-year option, so he’s gonna go into a contract year [in 2023]. Why not just deal him to a team that might need him?”
Moton then went on to explain that Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray, who suffered a torn ACL towards the end of the 2022 season, might not be ready for the start of the 2023 season. Because of that, Arizona might want to rely on its run game early in the season. So, adding CEH to a backfield with James Connor might be a wise course of action for the Cardinals.
DeAndre Hopkins Could be Traded Due to Cap Hit
The Cardinals plan to trade Hopkins this offseason, according to a January report by The Score’s Jordan Schultz. Hopkins has two years and $34 million left on his contract, and he will have a $30.7 million cap hit in 2023. He does have a full no-trade clause in his contract, per NBC Sports Boston, which means he has control over where he’s potentially traded to.
Hopkins was the 27th overall pick by the Houston Texans in 2013. Since then he has six 1,000-yard seasons, 853 receptions, 71 receiving touchdowns, and has been named an All-Pro three times and a Pro Bowler five times, per Pro Football Reference.
In March 2020, the Cardinals traded running back David Johnson, a second-round pick, and a fourth-round pick to the Texans in exchange for Hopkins and a fourth-round pick. Then in September of that year, Arizona gave Hopkins a two-year extension that included a $27 million signing bonus and $60 million in guarantees, per Spotrac.
As it stands, Hopkins ranks 36th all-time in career receiving yards (11,298) and is 3,047 yards away from cracking the top 10 all-time on that list (Reggie Wayne is 10th all-time with 14,345), according to Pro Football Reference.
Clyde Edwards-Helaire Viewed as ‘Potential Trade Option’
According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler on March 5, some NFL teams are viewing running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire as a “potential trade option” due to his role in Kansas City diminishing this past season and there being one year left on his rookie contract.
After scoring 3 total touchdowns (2 receiving, 1 rushing) in the Chiefs’ 41-31 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 4, Clyde Edwards-Helaire’s production dipped over the next couple of games to the point that he was supplanted by Isiah Pacheco as Kansas City’s top ball carrier in Week 7 against the San Francisco 49ers.
After getting pushed down the depth chart, Edwards-Helaire registered 10 total touches and 28 total yards from Week 7 to Week 10, per Pro Football Reference.
Edwards-Helaire suffered a high-ankle sprain during Kansas City’s 30-27 win over the division-rival Los Angeles Chargers in Week 11 and was placed on injured reserve (IR) on November 23. The Chiefs opened CEH’s 21-day practice window to return from IR on January 17, which was during the week leading up to the AFC Championship game. Yet, the Chiefs kept him sidelined for the AFC Championship as well as Super Bowl LVII despite being activated from IR on February 6.
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