Patriots Rumors: DeAndre Hopkins Contract to Be Pursued After Cardinals Release

The New England Patriots are reportedly expected to pursue veteran wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins in free agency following his release from the Arizona Cardinals on Friday.

According to Jeff Howe of The Athletic, the Patriots have a "level of interest" in Hopkins and are "more likely" to sign him in free agency than they would have been to trade for him and take on his existing contract.

Matt Lombardo of Heavy On Sports added that a source told him, "Don't rule New England out" in the sweepstakes for D-Hop.

New England has sorely lacked a big-time receiver for the past few seasons, as no New England wideout has topped 1,000 receiving yards since Julian Edelman in 2019.

Jakobi Meyers, who was the Patriots' top pass-catcher the past three seasons, signed with the Las Vegas Raiders in free agency. New England subsequently replaced him with JuJu Smith-Schuster, who won a Super Bowl with the Kansas City Chiefs last season and finished with 78 receptions for 933 yards and three touchdowns.

Even with Smith-Schuster in the fold, the Pats need more at receiver, especially on the outside. As of now, DeVante Parker, Kendrick Bourne and 2022 second-round pick Tyquan Thornton are penciled in as the Patriots' top receivers aside from JuJu.

Parker had just 539 yards last season and Bourne finished with just 434. Meanwhile, Thornton had only 22 catches for 247 yards as a rookie.

The 2023 campaign could be a make-or-break year for quarterback Mac Jones, and it will be difficult for him to establish himself as the long-term answer without an upgrade to his group of pass-catchers.

Hopkins would instantly become Jones' top target, as the 10-year NFL veteran is a five-time Pro Bowler and three-time first-team All-Pro.

The soon-to-be-31-year-old veteran has six career seasons with at least 1,000 receiving yards, four with at least 100 catches and three with double-digit touchdowns.

A six-game suspension for violating the NFL's performance-enhancing drug policy and an injury limited Hopkins to nine games last season, but he was excellent when he played, finishing with 64 grabs for 717 yards and three touchdowns.

While Hopkins would be an ideal target for the Pats, it is unclear if New England is even on his radar.

New Patriots offensive coordinator Bill O'Brien was Hopkins' head coach with the Houston Texans from 2014 until 2019 when he was traded to Arizona.

Hopkins once said he had "no relationship" with O'Brien, meaning the two would perhaps have to mend some fences to get on the same page.

The Patriots also don't have the makings of a team capable of competing for a Super Bowl in 2023, so if Hopkins' main goal is to win, it stands to reason that New England could be pretty far down his list.