Baltimore Ravens fans went from likely rooting against DeAndre Hopkins due to his ties to the Kansas City Chiefs to now hoping like heck he can bring some intensity to their team. Hopkins spent only a few months with the Chiefs and then signed with the Ravens in free agency, giving Baltimore's wide receiver room a much-needed lift.
With Hopkins signed, the Ravens' starting trio of receivers includes him, Rashod Bateman, and Zay Flowers. It's absolutely a fair argument to say this is the best group of wideouts Lamar Jackson has had in his career and hopefully, fans see that on the field.
Some might have wondered how good Hopkins still is, especially since the Chiefs didn't seem to mind letting him walk in free agency. Well, so far in OTAs, Hopkins has been looking like his old self. Head coach John Harbaugh couldn't help but praise his new receiver, noting that the experience Hopkins brings will be pivotal for the Ravens offense.
"He's moving great. Plus, he brings all that experience. He's been in big games before. He's made plays in the big games. He knows how to make plays. There's not going to be any situation that's going to be too big for him, but I just thought he and Lamar (Jackson) looked really good today out there together. It was nice to see."
Ravens might’ve just unlocked vintage DeAndre Hopkins again
Harbaugh wasn't the only one singing Hopkins' praises, as tight end Mark Andrews also had nothing but nice things to say about his new teammate.
"He looks really, really good. He's been making some big plays, and I think he's going to be great for our offense, just being versatile, having a guy that catches the ball extremely well, runs really fluid routes and knows the game well. And he looks like, when he's out here, he's flying around. He's looked really good."
The more weapons Jackson has to throw to on offense, the better the Ravens offense will be in 2025. It'll allow him to spread the football around more and make it more difficult for defenses to know what's coming and which player to home in on.
If Hopkins can be the guy he once was in Houston, Arizona, and Tennessee, the Ravens might end up having the most dangerous group of wide receivers in the NFL. That's terrifying news for anyone hoping to slow down Jackson.