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New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick deflected interest in free agent wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins, but ESPN’s Diana Russini revealed more behind the non-answer from Belichick.
“It’s really going to come down to what he prefers and what he wants because there are several teams, including the New England Patriots, who are interested in DeAndre Hopkins,” Russini said on ESPN’s “Get Up” on Thursday, June 1. “And we’re going to see over the next few weeks Hopkins taking visits with different teams, and he’s going to make a decision on what’s best for him.”
Hopkins, a three-time All-Pro wide receiver, became a major source of speculation after his release from the Arizona Cardinals on May 26. The five-time Pro Bowler had been linked to the Patriots in trade rumors throughout the offseason.
Belichick showed interest in Hopkins in December 2022 when the Patriots played the Cardinals as caught on camera. The Patriots couldn’t afford to trade Hopkins, but the team could now afford him as a free agent.
“I’m not going to comment on players that aren’t on this team,” Belichick told reporters on Wednesday, May 31.
If the Patriots added Hopkins, quarterback Mac Jones would have a solid duo at wide receiver because the Patriots signed JuJu Smith-Schuster as a free agent after the departure of top receiver Jakobi Meyers this offseason.
Patriots Face Challenge in Acquiring DeAndre Hopkins
ESPN’s Adam Schefter sees the fit between Hopkins and the Patriots, but one unanswered question remains. Would Hopkins play for Patriots offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien again?
The Houston Texans‘ head coach at the time, O’Brien traded Hopkins to the Cardinals in 2020. After the trade, Hopkins claimed that he and O’Brien had “no relationship” in Houston.
“New England could be interesting. New England has a need there,” Schefter said on the May 30 episode of “The Adam Schefter Podcast.” “But what I keep coming back to is that, in Houston, the man that traded DeAndre Hopkins was the then-Texans head coach Bill O’Brien. And who’s the Patriots offensive coordinator now? Bill O’Brien. I don’t think those two individuals, Bill O’Brien and DeAndre Hopkins, particularly cared for one another.
“So now it’s OK? That they’re just going to go back and get back together and be all right working together? I don’t know about that,” Schefter said. “I don’t know that New England is going to be atop his list. Now, it may be the one that makes the most financial sense, and if it is, then of course everybody can make it work. But I just don’t think we start out thinking that New England is going to be a top option, though in the end it could end up being the place that he lands.”
DeAndre Hopkins Not a ‘Program Fit’ for Patriots: Insider
Patriots insider Phil Perry of NBC Sports Boston wrote that he didn’t view Hopkins as right for New England.
“After talking with several league sources this week about a potential union between Hopkins and the Patriots, a handful of themes have emerged. He is not thought to be, I’m told, a ‘program fit,'” Perry wrote in a story published June 1.
Perry reported that one unnamed offensive assistant raised concerns about Hopkins’ approach to practice. Another unnamed coach claimed Hopkins is still a “phenomenal player,” he wrote.
“It’s not as though Hopkins would single-handedly wipe out the work that Belichick has done to create an environment that stands for certain principles,” Perry wrote. “But signing Hopkins would be an indication that Belichick is willing to bend on some of those principles to try to get back into contention after missing the postseason two of the last three years.”
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