[FREE] Underrated Trade Piece: DeAndre Hopkins
Is the Titans most valuable asset may be its newest piece?
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With longtime starter, Pro Bowler, and Titans legend Kevin Byard now out of the picture, it’s clear to everyone with 2 eyes and a brain that can comprehend.
The Titans have hit the reset button.
It’s a conclusion many thought the Titans should’ve come to after last season, when the team’s cap situation began to strangle the franchise’s ability to add talent. But the Titans waited it out, going into the season with a wait and see approach.
However, all's well that ends well, as the Titans have finally admitted their bleak situation and are on the road towards rebuilding the franchise into the contender it once was just 2 short years ago.
When a team usually hits the reset button, trade pieces begin to emerge across the roster.
Expiring contracts, younger players the team knows it won’t re-sign, bigger money deals contending teams will try to take on, the usual suspects of mid-season realizations that a team won’t be doing much damage during the season.
The Titans have a few players relating to those descriptions, all of which can either help a contender or give another team a player they can work with. Denico Autry, Kristian Fulton, Ryan Tannehill, and Derrick Henry all fit the mold.
But there’s one name that could give the Titans their largest return out of all their trade pieces. One that recently signed with the team during the summer, but is aging quickly and could be more open to fighting for a chance to win a ring instead of rotting away on a rebuilding team.
That name is one you all know pretty well, one that has remained the Titans’ sole receiving threat so far this season.
Yes, that name is none other than DeAndre Hopkins.
Why should Hopkins be moved?
The Titans are in no man’s lands right now.
They’re 2-4, last in their division, have roster holes on both sides of the ball, and are in desperate need of draft capital.
Those factors combine well to create the “perfect” scenario. One that includes moving Hopkins on to a team that needs receiver help during the stretch run.
Moving Hopkins now wouldn’t bring a sexy return package. In fact, it might be more underwhelming than usual, simply because of a few factors negatively affecting the team’s chances at bringing in the best value.
But the Titans need draft capital and they need it badly. So the Titans don’t have the room to complain here.
To put it into perspective, the Titans only had a pick in the 1st, 2nd, 4th, and 7th rounds before the Byard trade. Now they have an additional 5th and 6th round pick, but that isn’t enough for a team that needs to rely on draft capital to fill out the holes across the roster.
That’s why dangling Hopkins’ services for draft capital is necessary.
Keep in mind, the Titans still don’t have a 3rd round pick, nor do they have any extra picks in rounds 1-4. Hopkins won’t net them a pick that high, mostly because of his age and the money that’s still owed to him.
But he’s the best chance at receiving picks the Titans can use to draft or trade up if they wish to do so.
However, there’s some doubt as to whether Hopkins is truly a realistic trade piece.
Why?
But would the Titans actually move him?
It remains to be seen if the Titans would truly be motivated to move Hopkins.
Not only due to the mediocre offers they’d receive for him, but also due to the fact that the Titans still have some fleeting hope that they could turn things around and right the ship.
In fact, players have been comparing their 2-4 start to the 2019 season, a turbulent season that somehow saw the Titans make the AFC championship game.
Now it’s great to stay in the competitive spirit, staying confident in your group admits struggles, and trying your hardest until you realistically can’t do so anymore.
But let’s be real here, this Titans team is way different from the 2019 team. One obvious difference? No reliable WR duo to help take pressure off the run game.
(Another AJ Brown reminder for you depressed fans)
Nonetheless, the Titans still believe they can compete, which is why moving Hopkins — a move that would significantly lessen their chances of competing — wouldn’t make sense from *their* point of view.
With all that said and done, what should the Titans do?
What should the Titans do?
I think you already know what’s coming.
If the Titans can get an offer worth mulling over, they should pull the trigger.
Now what they deem an offer worth mulling over remains to be seen. But if a team offered a 4th round pick for an aging Hopkins for example, the Titans should pounce on it right away.
Like mentioned before, it’s unlikely they receive an offer approaching that. But there’s still teams out there that would greatly appreciate some receiving help, teams that could throw draft picks toward the Titans' way to acquire Hopkins’ services.
And if that’s the case, then the green light on a Hopkins deal should be on the agenda.
Overview
Honestly, who knows what the Titans will do with Hopkins.
There hasn’t been much chatter surrounding any potential Hopkins trade, for good reason too considering the fact that the Titans reportedly might not receive much value for him.
But if there’s any chance for a deal that makes sense for the Titans, the trigger needs to be pulled.
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