The Real DeAndre Hopkins: Matt Nagy Reveals the NFL Star’s Strengths and Weaknesses
It isn’t all too often that an NFL club adds a future Hall of Fame-caliber player during the season. Normally, those veterans sign prior to the year and stick with their teams until that deal is up. Luckily for the Kansas City Chiefs, none of that applied to wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins and since coming over via trade with the Tennessee Titans, he’s been a big part of the offense.
Not too big of a part, though, as the 32-year-old is currently posting his lowest average yards per game mark of his decade-plus career. Despite that, Hopkins isn’t letting that get to him. If anything, being a part of something of greater importance is even more ideal at this stage of his football life. Hopkins has seen and done just about everything besides win at the highest level.
Kansas City presents him with his best chance to do that, and he’s taken the adjustment in stride. Now, with nearly two months of being around Hopkins on a daily basis, offensive coordinator Matt Nagy says he’s learned about how much of a true professional and unselfish teammate Hopkins can be.
“I knew from the first day that I saw him that he was going to be professional, but it’s carried on to – like he’s unselfish in the fact of understanding – now, there’s going to be a lot of times and moments in the game that he wants a shot to get the ball,” Nagy said. “He also understands the selflessness that we have in this offense of spreading the ball around at times, so I just really appreciate that. There’s a learning side to him, too, also in understanding that we do this thing together and he’s voiced that, man. He’s like, ‘This is great to be a part of a unit that everybody understands this thing goes through us, not through me’ and I think that part’s real. To me, it’s been really organic and positive from his side of it as far as how he’s handled it.”
In eight games with the Chiefs thus far, Hopkins has been targeted 51 times and hauled in 35 passes for 393 yards and four touchdowns. Over the course of a full season, those numbers extrapolate out to 108 targets, 74 catches, 835 yards and eight scores. For someone who is currently wrapping up his 12th season in the league, that’s more than acceptable production. It becomes even more obvious when factoring in a snap share (51%) that would be a huge decline from what he had in his last full season with the Tennessee Titans (72%).
At this point, no one would blame Hopkins if he was relatively set in his ways. Having five Pro Bowls and three All-Pro nods on your resume likely does that to many players. Nagy doesn’t see one bit of that, however, and appreciates the dialogue he has with Hopkins both during the week and in games.
Hopkins got going quickly in Kansas City, posting eight receptions for 86 yards and two scores in just his second game. There was an instant synergy between him and quarterback Patrick Mahomes and while the numbers haven’t been anything crazy, Hopkins remains the club’s best wideout. Only tight end Travis Kelce has been more productive on paper.
With that said, it’s become increasingly obvious that whatever the box score shows doesn’t matter much to Hopkins or his coaching staff.
