Patriots are reportedly out on trading for top receiver
All of the news regarding the Patriots in recent weeks has surrounded their apparent pursuit of wide receivers around the league.
It has been well reported that Bill Belichick has spoken with the Broncos about Jerry Jeudy and the Cardinals for DeAndre Hopkins, their alleged top two targets. But problems have risen since those conversations began, forcing the Patriots to step away from trade talks for one of these players, at least for now.
Despite the respect and appreciation between Belichick and Hopkins, which initially sparked the idea for the trade, Arizona is said to be asking too much in return for the five-time Pro Bowler. It was originally reported they were asking for a second-round pick, but after the Brandin Cooks trade to the Cowboys, several teams that had previously shown interest in trading for Hopkins were not willing to give up what the Cardinals were hoping for.
One of those teams was said to be the Patriots.
The Cooks trade set the bar for what they could get in return for Hopkins, as the Cowboys only gave up a fifth-round pick this year and a sixth-rounder in 2024. Considering the similarities between Cooks and Hopkins in age and salary, Hopkins’ stock took a massive hit, seemingly eliminating teams from getting a trade done if the Cardinals refused to lower their asking price. Not only that, most teams are said to be under the impression that a trade now would just be for salary dump purposes.
In Jeff Howe’s latest piece for The Athletic, he discusses the Patriots as one of the teams with this belief which has led them to be out in acquiring Hopkins for now.
"“With a new Cardinals regime, headed by GM Monti Ossenfort and coach Jonathan Gannon, rival teams know Hopkins would be a salary dump, which significantly reduces his trade value. That’s why teams like the Patriots, who had an early conversation with the Cardinals, don’t plan to pursue him unless there’s a substantial change in philosophy, according to a league source.”"
It may not be news that Patriots fans want to hear, but this may force the Cardinals’ hand if they truly want to move on from Hopkins in the near future.
This also doesn’t eliminate the possibility of Belichick making a trade for Jerry Jeudy, their other prime target this offseason. Although they are running into a similar issue with Denver regarding their trade price, nothing is off the table regarding a deal getting done as of this moment.