Could the NY Giants actually try and trade for Cardinals WR DeAndre Hopkins?
The rumor mill is working overtime right now with free agency and the NFL Draft right around the corner. For the NY Giants, everyone knows that general manager Joe Schoen is going to do everything possible to fix the lack of talent for the wide receivers room. This team is in dire need for a true WR1.
How about DeAndre Hopkins? For a little while now, it’s been made clear the the Cardinals will look to part ways with him in the near future. In a new article from Pro Football Focus, they list five trades to watch for this offseason. They have D-Hop to the G-Men on their list.
NY Giants trading for DeAndre Hopkins would fire up the fanbase
Despite missing a large chunk of last season due to his suspension, there’s no question that Hopkins is still one of the most dominant wideouts in the game. However, it would cost the G-Men a pretty penny to get him to Metlife Stadium. In their piece, PFF states that Big Blue would send Arizona a second-round pick and a fifth-round pick. That’s not the big dent, though.
It would be with Hopkins’ contract, as he would come along with what’s projected to be a $22 million cap hit for the 2023 season. While that doesn’t seem like a ton for a player of his talent level, the Giants may not have the room for such a number due to other needs on the roster both on offense and defense.
With (for now) more than $44 million in cap space to work with, $32.4 million could go away if the Giants use the non-exclusive franchise tag on Daniel Jones. Releasing Kenny Golladay and potentially restructuring Leonard Williams’ deal would help out, but that $20+ million hit for Hopkins would sting.
But if Schoen and Co. are able to pull something off to land Hopkins, plus ink Jones to a multi-year deal without having to tag him, then maybe a trade of this nature could work for the Giants. There’s a lot of different things that will need to happen for Hopkins to rock an NY jersey next season, but crazier things have happened.
