DeAndre Hopkins Traded to Chiefs from Titans for Rumored 5th-Round NFL Draft Pick

The season of high-profile wide receiver trades continued when the Tennessee Titans traded DeAndre Hopkins to the Kansas City Chiefs, per ESPN's Adam Schefter on Wednesday. The Chiefs confirmed the trade on Thursday morning:

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport added the Chiefs will send a fifth-round draft pick that could become a fourth-rounder to the Titans in the deal.

This comes after the Las Vegas Raiders already traded Davante Adams to the New York Jets and the Cleveland Browns traded Amari Cooper to the Buffalo Bills. Both Las Vegas and Cleveland were struggling in the standings with uneven quarterback play and decided to turn toward the future by moving their veteran pass-catcher, and the Titans were in a similar situation.

Will Levis has largely underperformed, and the 1-5 Titans aren't contenders in the AFC.

Hopkins' overall production was lagging as a result, and the AFC South team also got something in return before he could have potentially gone elsewhere with his contract set to expire after the 2024 season.

Now his new team hopes a change of scenery helps the five-time Pro Bowler and three-time First-Team All-Pro selection return to some of his peak production.

While Hopkins has 15 catches for 173 yards and a touchdown in six games this season, he went over 1,000 receiving yards for the seventh time in his career just last year. He also has three seasons of double-digit touchdown receptions, including when he led the league with 13 in 2017.

The veteran is 32 years old and in his 12th season in the league, so it may be unrealistic to expect him to be the same receiver he was in 2017 with the Houston Texans. But he is a polished route runner, can come down with contested catches and is still capable of beating single coverage in impressive fashion.

He can also provide leadership down the stretch of the season and is in an ideal position to challenge for the first Lombardi Trophy of his career.

After all, the Chiefs are going for a third straight Super Bowl title and addressed their biggest area of need with this move.

Wide receivers Rashee Rice and Marquise "Hollywood" Brown are both out with significant injuries, which left the offense short of playmakers. That is especially the case because running back Isiah Pacheco is also sidelined, which puts even more of the onus on future Hall of Famer Travis Kelce and rookie Xavier Worthy.

Things haven't looked good for this offense, though it hasn't mattered because the team is 6-0 largely on the strength of a defense that has allowed the fifth-fewest points per game. Patrick Mahomes is averaging a career-low 231.6 passing yards per game with more interceptions (eight) than touchdowns (six) this season.

Worthy can beat defenders deep and Kelce is still an all-time great at tight end, but Hopkins gives Mahomes another reliable target who can make plays downfield or underneath while making the offense all the more dangerous as it chases a Lombardi Trophy.