DeAndre Hopkins lets his actions do the talking. Never one to create a frenzy out of thin air, the Houston Texans wideout hailing from South Carolina rarely enters conversations for the words that come out of his mouth.
Though silent playing a position that is anything but mute, Hopkins is a leader for the Texans. Specifically, those younger players hoping to share the field with him snap-to-snap.
“Hop’s a really good teammate. I think he does a good job with the younger players. I think he’s very football smart,” said coach Bill O’Brien on Wednesday. “He’s played a lot of football, he’s got a lot of experience versus a lot of different coverages, a lot of different corners, so he can help a younger player relative to what the look might be.”
Hopkins, 27, is in his seventh year in the NFL. During those seven seasons, he has racked up 596 receptions, 8,102 yards and 51 touchdowns. He has missed just one game in his career, starting all 104 others.
Hopkins, otherwise known as “Nuk,” knows football. If he can share the knowledge that he has picked up over the years, he will do just that. As stated multiple times, the only goal of his is to win; progressing his teammates’ knowledge only helps achieve that goal.
“He helps even the running backs when they’re out there with him in the formation, ‘hey, this is what it might be, this is what it might be.’ So, I think he just does a good job of communicating all of his knowledge based on how much he’s played,” O’Brien said. “He’s been a successful player, but he’s successful for a lot of reasons, and one of him is his football savviness, his ability to understand what’s going on X’s and O’s wise.”
On Sunday, Texans-Ravens spectators may not see Hopkins chat as much as other receivers. When he does, however, it’s for a good reason.