The Arizona Cardinals did not have DeAndre Hopkins on the field for their last four games of the 2021 season, and now it seems that they will also not have him on the field to start the 2022 season.
The NFL announced Monday that the Cardinals’ stellar successor has been suspended in six games for violating NFL’s policy on the use of drugs to increase efficiency. The suspension means Hopkins will be out until mid-October. The ban will leave him off the field until at least Week 7 and may leave him out until Week 8 if the Cards receive a bye during the first six weeks of the season.
Later Monday, DeAndre Hopkins’ brand manager, Doug Sanders, released the following statement on the shutdown (via ESPN):
“Today, the NFL announced its decision to suspend DeAndre Hopkins as a result of a November drug test that returned with trace elements from a banned substance. DeAndre and everyone who works with him are completely shocked by this discovery, because he is extremely diligent about what he puts in his body. His tests in October and December were negative and we are investigating how positive the test was in November. DeAndre undertook to demonstrate that it had not deliberately taken a banned substance. He has never given a positive test in his 10-year career. We are currently testing every product he has used to find out how this could have happened, and we will release any new information as soon as we receive it. “
If the Cardinals knew this was coming, it would explain why they made the surprising deal for the Marquis of Brown during the draft. On the first night of the NFL 2022 draft, the Cardinals sent out the 23rd overall pick in Baltimore in exchange for Brown and the 100th overall pick, which was later used to select defender Mijay Sanders of Cincinnati.
Hopkins ‘loss is devastating for the Cardinals’ offense, which seems to always fight when he’s out. In 2021, the star receiver of the Cards missed a total of seven games due to injury and in these games the Cardinals finished only 3-4. To put this into perspective, Arizona scored 8-2 in the 10 games Hopkins played last season.
Although he missed seven games in 2021 due to a knee injury and a separate hamstring injury, Hopkins still leads the team with eight touchdown catches, three more than any other receiver. The 29-year-old, who turns 30 in June, also finished the season with 42 catches for 572 yards and eight touchdowns.
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The five-time Pro Bowler has been a big part of the Cardinals’ offense since arriving in Arizona after an exchange before the 2020 season. In his only full season with the Cardinals, Hopkins caught 115 passes for 1,407 yards. His total number of admissions in 2020 ranked second in the NFL, while his total yard ranked third that year.
With Hopkins absent for the first six games, this will increase the warmth of the other Cardinals’ receiver. The Cardinals will need players like Hollywood Brown, AJ Green and Rondall Moore to come out big while Hopkins is away. Another successor, Andy Isabella, was reportedly in the block before the draft, but the Cardinals may change their minds now that Hopkins is away.
Arizona’s leading successor from last season, Christian Kirk, is no longer on the team after signing a four-year deal with the Jaguars in March.
Despite the suspension, Hopkins has the right to participate in all pre-season training and pre-season games. The Cardinals will know exactly which games Hopkins will be missing when the NFL schedule is released on May 12.
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