Former Clemson star wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins isn’t ready to close the book on his lengthy NFL career just yet.
Hopkins is now 34 years old and a 13-year NFL veteran, who currently remains a free agent heading into training camps. However, the five-time Pro Bowler and three-time first-team All-Pro feels he’s still got plenty of football left in him.
“As I go into my 14th year, of course, I love playing the game, I still love football. But if nothing happens, life is still good, and I’m looking forward to that next chapter,” Hopkins said on SiriusXM NFL Radio.
“I still got a lot of ball left, but it’s not a situation that I’m sitting here trying to force, or go out and be the regular season superstar. Because that’s for the young guys, that’s for the people that they want to develop, and get those contracts to look at the future.”
Hopkins spent last season with the Baltimore Ravens after signing a one-year deal with the team in March 2025. In 17 games with Baltimore, he hauled in 22 receptions for 330 yards and two touchdowns, averaging exactly 15.0 yards per reception – just shy of his career high of 15.9 yards per catch back in 2014, his second NFL season.
Hopkins, who is widely considered a strong Hall of Fame candidate after he calls it quits, recognizes that he is no longer a bona fide No. 1 receiver at this stage of his career. But that doesn’t mean he can’t still bring value to a team as what he called a “special situation kind of guy.”
“I know in my position, I’m a utility guy,” he said. “I’m a special situation kind of guy. I can go out there and beat anybody one-on-one, anytime. As of lately, I’ve been a third-down guy. I wasn’t used in the red zone last year. But third down, they can come to me. So, I don’t think that’ll change anytime soon.”
Hopkins is staying patient as he seeks a new NFL team and isn’t in a hurry to sign. But if and when he does ink a deal, he ideally wants to play for a team that can help him get the big thing missing from his gaudy resume – a Super Bowl ring.
“Going into Year 14, I would love to play for a competitor if that time came,” Hopkins said. “But I’m not in no rush to go out regular season and be a regular season superstar. Because for me, I’m not getting a contract extension.”
Hopkins has amassed 1,006 receptions for 13,295 yards and 85 touchdowns over 195 games during his career with the Houston Texans, Arizona Cardinals, Tennessee Titans, Kansas City Chiefs and Ravens since being selected by Houston in the first round of the 2013 NFL Draft (No. 27 overall pick).
Hopkins has appeared in one Super Bowl, when he played for the Chiefs in Super Bowl LIX (February 2025) and caught two passes for 18 yards and a touchdown in the Chiefs’ 40-22 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.
NFL Trade Rumors named the top free agent fits for Hopkins, listing the Washington Commanders, Minnesota Vikings, Detroit Lions and Cincinnati Bengals.
Hopkins was recently asked by Sports Illustrated if there’s one particular quarterback he’d like to play with that he hasn’t yet, and he named Bengals star Joe Burrow.