There’s no doubt in anybody’s mind that DeAndre Hopkins has been the Houston Texans number one guy on offense this year. I think it’s also safe to say that nobody saw it coming.
The third-year receiver has started 38-straight games since entering the league for a combined 13 touchdowns; a total which is hardly breathtaking. However, the former 27th overall pick has led the NFL in receiving yards through six games so far this season and also equalled the total number of receptions throughout his rookie season at 52.
Many people expected to see the Texans hit the free agency market for a running back as soon as Arian Foster was lost in the offseason; however Hopkins has shown his ability to be a stand-out performer on the offensive side of the ball despite a Texans team which is a shadow of the side which chased the playoffs a year ago. It’s his ability to stand out on a national scale as part of a team that’s almost guaranteed a top 10 pick in next year’s draft which caught my attention. Hopkins’ stats would be impressive in any team, however to be in the top five across the league in receptions, touchdowns, receiving yards and receptions over 20 yards whilst part of a team which are currently ranked 28th in passing completion percentage and 5th in interceptions, is simply breathtaking.
So far this season Hopkins has doubled the receiving yards of ‘elite’ players such as Jimmy Graham and Greg Olsen, both of whom much like Johnson are playing for some of the best quarterbacks in the league. Hopkins’ ability to thrive amongst a lacklustre group of players is reminiscent of cult hero Andre Johnson, who was expected to do the same whilst he was the key figure in the Texans offense. Hopkins has shone this year as a breakout star in Houston despite an ongoing battle for the starting quarterback job which neither competitor looks good enough to win (both Hoyer and Mallet are unable to perform consistently and neither show any degree of poise or pocket presence). His success despite a lack of playmakers on the offensive side of the ball is a true testament to Hopkins’ ability and is highlighted by the fact that he is on track to obliterate most of the single season records set by the future Hall of Famer Johnson.
Comparing Hopkins’ production to Andre Johnson’s is interesting to say the least. During the offseason many people were fantasising about Johnson combining with Andrew Luck, the man who led the NFL with 40 touchdowns in the 2014 season. Although a slight shoulder injury has kept Luck out of 2 divisional games this season, Johnson has only caught 16 passes for 2 touchdowns across the first 6 games of the year and in comparison to Hopkins’ league leading production is certainly something that nobody predicted. However Hopkins was more productive than Johnson in their last season together with the Texans, and therefore his emergence as a true game changing receiver shouldn’t be taken as a surprise.
To consider him as an elite receiver in the NFL you have to compare Hopkins to those who are currently at the top of the game. Many regard Antonio Brown as the top receiver in the league, very closely followed by Megatron himself, Calvin Johnson. Many others such as Demaryius Thomas, AJ Green and Julio Jones are considered as the top bracket of receiving talent in the league, how does Hopkins stack up against a group of such phenomenal talent? Well, currently he’s doing a pretty good job. Hopkins is beginning to make plays consistently, his game against the Jacksonville Jaguars only emphasises this; 2 touchdowns and a superb one handed catch down the sideline only highlight his playmaking ability, and it’s one of many stand-out performances that he’s had so far this season. It is purely a measure of consistency, elite receivers are only considered as such due to their consistent performance at a high level. Each of the aforementioned receivers are their respective teams’ ‘go-to guy’ on offense, and therefore are having a dramatic impact on their teams’ performances.
There’s evidence to suggest that Hopkins is beginning to effect a game as an elite receiver should. In the game versus the Falcons in week 4—despite his team being blown out 21-48—if you compare the two number one receivers during a game you see that Julio Jones caught just 2 passes for 38 yards, however Hopkins burnt Dan Quinn’s defense for 9 receptions totalling 157 yards and 2 touchdowns. Players such as AJ Green and Calvin Johnson look as though they will punish any team when they aren’t being double covered, and have set huge numbers over multiple seasons; it is these heights that Hopkins must reach before truly being considered as a great receiver. Nevertheless, there have been few players who have been as instrumental to their team’s performances as Hopkins has been so far this season, therefore if he maintains his current level of performance then it will be hard to deny him the title of premier receiver within the NFL, and you can only imagine his inevitable contract extension will reflect it.
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