DeAndre Hopkins is a Tennessee Titan. A guy that wanted to play for a contender, a good quarterback, and a good organization went to go to an organization with a first-year GM, an average at best QB, and an organization that is infamous for being an elite wide receiver retirement home over the Chiefs. His decision, not ours though, and so here we are. A lot of people really wanted Hopkins to go to the Chiefs due to the Chiefs seemingly lacking in an elite wide receiver, one to take the load off Travis Kelce. They did not get their wish, but that's perfectly okay and I'll tell you why. Yes, many people are drawing parallels to the Aaron Rodgers situation in Green Bay, building everything but weapons to surround Mahomes with, but it's simply not the case. Let's observe my takes on the situation.
First and foremost, the Chiefs were missing a large piece when it came to potentially getting Hopkins to come to KC, and that was to re-sign Chris Jones to free up some cap in order to even make a qualifying offer. Both camps in this situation have been confident that a deal will get done before training camp, but so far nothing has happened. This is priority number one as of now, Chris Jones is the centerpiece of this Chiefs defense and it is imperative that he gets re-signed. Then what happens though? Well, a few things can happen really. The Chiefs can go bargain bin digging in order to find one of the last free agent wide receivers left, they could sign a running back (because that's what everyone wants right now is to pick up a free agent RB), or (and this is my favorite option) they can use that cap space to extend L'Jarius Sneed. Sneed has been one of the top cornerbacks in the AFC and the NFL as of late and is seen as a key presence in that young Chiefs secondary, so keeping him around would certainly pay dividends. I say that once Jones is re-signed, the Chiefs go out and they use this extra cap on Sneed's contract to extend him. Having him in the defensive backfield for years to come will help the development of these young defensive backs and will take the weight off their shoulder early in their careers.
Now we move onto the wide receiver situation. Many are already tabbing the Chiefs wide receiver room as one of the worst in the NFL. I have come to tell you that they are wrong. While yes as it stands the Chiefs do not have any big names at receiver, the ceiling of this group is incredibly high. They're young, they're quick, they've all shown flashes of greatness, and if developed correctly all under the quarterbacking of Patrick Mahomes, can carve out fantastic careers. We already saw what Mahomes can do with a ragtag group of receivers such as this, he can win Super Bowls. I think no differently of this group here. Not only that, but looking ahead to the 2024 Draft, we already see some quality receiver talent across the board. The big name is obviously Marvin Harrison Jr., but you also have names like fellow Buckeye Emeka Egbuka, Texas' Xavier Worthy, Washington's Rome Odunze, Oregon's Troy Franklin, and FSU's Johnny Wilson to name a few. There is a solid group of receivers much like this past draft that look honestly more NFL ready than this past group and I think the Chiefs may potentially be banking on that. Not to mention you never know what will happen in next year's free agency. Brett Veach has always played the long game and I wouldn't anticipate that to stop here, so I say we wait and see on this wide receiver corps to see how they develop before we pass judgement. You never know, we may see the advent of a really great receiving corps.
Overall, I do not think much of DeAndre Hopkins going elsewhere. If anything, I'm glad people will finally shut up about him on social media. He's a great receiver, but the weight of the bag outweighed the weight of rings in this case. The Chiefs will be fine as they've been in years' past without making a big splash in free agency. Yes, it does have some parallels to the Rodgers situation in Green Bay, however it's simply not the same situation. Mahomes already has more rings than Rodgers, has a completely different attitude toward playing in KC than Rodgers did playing in GB, and overall, the coaches and front office that Green Bay had in the Rodgers era cannot hold a candle to the administration the Chiefs have in Brett Veach, Andy Reid, and company. Fret not folks, believe in #MahomesMagic as well as that good ol' #VeachBlackMagic and things will turn out for the better, I promise.
Burn Notice: 6/10 Watch Toney blow Hopkins out of the water stat wise this year, dare I say I wouldn't be surprised...?
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