Tag: Bill O’Brien

Grading the DeAndre Hokpins trade: The Texans get an F (duh) for an indefensible trade

The Texans gave away one of the best receivers in the game (DeAndre Hopkins) for a player the Cardinals were desperate to get rid of.

Well damn.

A few weeks ago, I wrote a post on NFL stars who were likely to be traded this offseason. Initially, I had considered putting David Johnson on the list but then decided against it for two reasons:

(1) Johnson had lost his starting job in Arizona to Kenyan Drake. Can we really consider a backup running back a star?

(2) Johnson’s contract was basically untradeable on its own, so any team that was to trade for him would actually be trading for the draft pick the Cardinals would have to package along with him to get another team to bite.

I underestimated Bill O’Brien’s incompetence.

The Texans did trade for David Johnson and his fully guaranteed $10.2 million salary. They also got a second-round pick in the deal. I feel like I’m leaving a big part out. Oh yeah … THEY ALSO GAVE AWAY DEANDRE HOPKINS.

Hold up, let me make sure I’m not getting played by one of those fake Adam Schefter accounts…

Nope, there’s a blue check and everything. The Texans actually made this trade. Christ.

I don’t even know if Johnson can be considered part of the compensation package, as the Cardinals were desperate to get rid of him and his bloated cap number. It was clear that his best football is behind him and he’s only two years away from turning 30. He’s not getting any better.

Look at him “run”…

No running back is worth $10.2 million. Especially not one who runs like that.

So, essentially, Houston paid $15.3 million for a washed-up running back and a second-round pick while giving up one of the three best receivers in the league AND a fourth-round pick. This comes one year after the Giants got first- and third-round picks plus Jabrill Peppers from the Browns for Odell Beckham. When Dave Gettleman is out-maneuvering you as a GM, things aren’t going so well.

We are getting reports that Hopkins was looking for a new contract the Texans wouldn’t be able to afford with Deshaun Watson and Laremy Tunsil needing new deals, which kind of, sort of explains why Houston was so eager to deal him. But he was under team control through 2022. He had no leverage, and you have to imagine teams would be willing to give up more than a second-round pick for a player of his caliber. The Falcons just traded a second-round pick for Hayden Hurst, after all.

The Cardinals have to be elated just to have the Johnson contract off of their books. That they added Hopkins, who fills one of the biggest holes on the roster, in the process is just … what’s better than icing on the cake? It’s like getting two cakes.

Kliff Kingsbury might be the biggest winner here. He had already coaxed an above-average offense out of one of the least talented rosters in the league through X’s and O’s alone, but he needed a No. 1 receiver who could beat man coverage in order for the team to take the next step. Well, he found one.

Now the Cardinals can focus on building up the offensive line. It’s a good year to that with this draft class being loaded with offensive line prospects. If Arizona wanted to recoup some of the draft capital they gave up in the trade, they could move down from the 10th pick and do so. That’s probably the best option, but just using that pick on a top offensive line prospect isn’t a bad Plan B. GM Steve Keim has options.

Meanwhile in Houston, the Texans added some much-needed draft capital, but now have a gaping hole at receiver — maybe they can use that second-round pick on a receiver and hope he’s as good as Hopkins! And, sure, they have $50 million in cap space to throw around but a large chunk of that is earmarked for Deshaun Watson and Laremy Tunsil, so it’s not like the Texans can go crazy in free agency. Have I mentioned they don’t have a first-round pick in either of the next two drafts?

I don’t know what Bill O’Brien is doing. That’s something we seem to have in common.

Cardinals grade: A
Texans grade: F

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