The Arizona Cardinals spent this past weekend’s NFL Draft trying to bolster their roster to challenge the 49ers and defending champion Rams in the loaded NFC West.
The biggest move they made came during Thursday’s opening round, when they dealt the No. 23 pick to Baltimore for Hollywood Brown and the 100th overall selection, adding the speedy receiver to an already strong group. It was a major move that, in the moment, shifted focus to what Baltimore was doing with their receiver group, as they now have a number of quality tight ends but Rashod Bateman as the current top receiver around Lamar Jackson.
On the Cardinals side, the trade might not have simply been about adding another weapon, but also mitigating the absence of one, as word emerged from Adam Schefter on Monday afternoon that the team would open the season without De’Andre Hopkins for the first six games due to a PED suspension.
Cardinals’ Pro-Bowl WR DeAndre Hopkins is being suspended six games for violating the NFL’s Performance Enhancing Drug policy, league sources tell ESPN. pic.twitter.com/hNGNX4Aegx
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) May 2, 2022
#AZCardinals WR DeAndre Hopkins is suspended 6 games for violating the league’s PED drug policy, as @AdamSchefter said.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) May 2, 2022
That means the Cardinals will spend the first third of the season without Hopkins, which puts additional pressure on Brown, AJ Green, and others like Rondale Moore to fill that hole. The problem is, none of those players in their current form can replace what Hopkins does as a physical receiver who is dangerous in any situation, but particularly int he red zone. With Kyler Murray already expressing his frustrations with the Cardinals this offseason over a lack of a new deal, Arizona now will be without his top target as they try to smooth things over with the former No. 1 overall pick.