Stop me if you've heard this before, but the Baltimore Ravens didn't have a splashy free agency. Aside from bringing back Ronnie Stanley and Patrick Ricardm, and signing veteran cornerback Chidobe Awuzie to a league-minimum deal, the Ravens have really only made one noticeable addition. Even though his name is certainly recognizable, DeAndre Hopkins is no longer the superstar he used to be—and that's okay.
Hopkins agreed to a one-year, $5 million deal to give Lamar Jackson another weapon on offense. Too many times the team literally falls short in short-yardage situations and lacks a possession receiver to move the chains. Hopkins solves both of those issues. Which is all he needs to do to have a successful season in Baltimore.
I know it. The fans know it. The organization knows it. Long gone are the days of 100 catches for 1,000-plus yards. He'll be 33 years old when the season starts for crying out loud. That's why when an anonymous exec spoke out about the Hopkins addition, it immediately caught eyes.
Anonymous exec throws cold water on Ravens-DeAndre Hopkins signing
In Mike Sando's latest piece for The Athletic, he provided unfiltered takes from anonymous execs around the league who discussed other teams and their thoughts on what's been going on around the league. Let's just say one exec wasn't overly impressed with Baltimore's move.
After praising their re-signing of Stanley, they said: "D-Hop, that doesn't do anything for me. He's just a name at this point."
Alright then. So be it.
If you’re expecting peak Texans-era Hopkins, sure, you’ll be disappointed. But writing him off entirely because his numbers dipped while splitting time in Tennessee and Kansas City feels like willful ignorance.
He still hauled in 56 passes for 610 yards and five touchdowns last year. In Kansas City alone, he was on pace for over 700 yards and 7 scores as a secondary option—a role he was filling by circumstance.
The Ravens already have Zay Flowers, Rashod Bateman, Mark Andrews, and Isaiah Likely. They don’t need a WR1 or 2. They need someone who can win short and intermediate routes, especially when the play breaks down or Jackson is extending the pocket. That’s where Hopkins shines.
“Just a name” is what you say when you haven’t been paying attention. Hopkins doesn’t have to carry this offense—glamour stats are for the birds anyway—but he can absolutely help win games, and that’s all the Ravens are asking for. One way or another, we'll see how it shakes out in 2025.