DeAndre Hopkins Deletes Tweet Calling out Texans Chairman Cal McNair
October 8, 2020
DeAndre Hopkins briefly shot back at Texans chairman Cal McNair in a since-deleted tweet on Wednesday over the contract dispute that led to his offseason trade.
Now a member of the Arizona Cardinals, Hopkins responded to a comment McNair made on SportsRadio 610 in Houston in which the chairman said "when Hopkins wanted to re-do his contract, it just wasn't something we could do."
The wideout, currently acting as his own agent, criticized McNair's characterization of the dispute and noted he asked for a "bandaid" [sic] deal, giving him a little raise rather than a new contract.
Hopkins was sent to Arizona in a widely panned deal that gave the Cardinals the All-Pro receiver and a 2020 fourth-round pick for running back David Johnson, a second-round pick in 2020 and a 2021 fourth-round pick.
In Wednesday's interview, McNair said the team was dealing with financial constraints following a three-year, $66 million agreement with left tackle Laremy Tunsil and quarterback Deshaun Watson's four-year, $177.5 million extension when Hopkins made his demand.
"We moved him to a team that has an exciting and fun offense," McNair said. "I think we did a good job of placing him in a good place. He's a talented, talented guy. We would love to have him but it wasn't going to fit financially with all the constraints that we have in operating."
In four games with Arizona, Hopkins has the fourth-most receiving yards (397) and the most receptions (39) in the league, helping the Cardinals (2-2) stay competitive in a tough NFC West.
Meanwhile, the Texans fired head coach and general manager Bill O'Brien on Monday after an 0-4 start to the season.
This isn't the first time Hopkins has commented on his former team this year.
After the Texans were throughly out-matched in a 34-20 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in the season opener, Hopkins took to Twitter again to post a simple message.
"Grateful," the wideout posted.
That may be, but it hasn't stopped him from looking back on how things ended in Houston.