Patriots are reportedly still in the DeAndre Hopkins sweepstakes

It’s been close to a week since DeAndre Hopkins was cut by the Cardinals and entered free agency. 

And according to multiple reports, the Patriots are still in the mix for the 30-year-old wideout’s services.

“There are several teams, including the New England Patriots, that are interested in DeAndre Hopkins,” Dianna Russini said on ESPN’s “Get Up” program on Thursday. “We’re going to see over the next few weeks Hopkins taking visits with different teams, and then he’s going to make a decision.”

On Tuesday, ESPN’s Adam Schefter noted on his podcast that the Patriots are still a good fit for Hopkins, due in large part to their available cap space and ability to outbid other teams.

“New England could be interesting, New England has a need there,” Schefter said. “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. I don’t think those two individuals particularly cared for one another. So now it’s OK?

“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.”

Multiple teams are expected to court Hopkins in free agency. Russini also listed both the Chiefs and Bills as potential landing spots for Hopkins, with the primary pitch centered on pairing the wideout with an elite QB in Patrick Mahomes or Josh Allen.

Mac Jones may not be Mahomes or Allen, but the Patriots can certainly alleviate some of Hopkins’ concerns with a heftier contract.

While both the Bills ($1.4 million in cap space) and Chiefs ($652,557) have little fiscal flexibility, the Patriots have $14.1 million to spend, per OverTheCap.com. 

Tim Graham of The Athletic also reported on Thursday that the Bills stand as a “long shot” to sign Hopkins. 

Even though Hopkins will likely not command the $19.45 million salary he was set to earn with the Cardinals this year, Russini did add in her report that Hopkins “wants to get paid the type of money that we saw Odell Beckham Jr. get paid.”

Beckham eventually signed a one-year, $15 million contract with the Ravens earlier this offseason.

“Not that same exact amount, but money’s definitely a part of this,” Russini said. “And when you’re looking at all the teams around the league that are interested in DeAndre Hopkins, it’s got to work financially for them.”

Even though he’s set to turn 31 in less than a week, Hopkins is still an elite talent at his position.

Despite being limited to just nine games last year with the Cardinals, Hopkins reeled in 64 catches for 717 yards and three touchdowns.

Hopkins finished his third season in Arizona with 79.7 yards per game, the 10th-highest mark among all NFL wide receivers in 2022. Jakobi Meyers, the top Patriots receiving threat in 2022, ranked 32nd in that same field at 57.4 yards per game.