Houston Texans: How DeAndre Hopkins became an icon
The Houston Texans are no strangers to NFL icons, as defensive end J.J. Watt, running back Arian Foster, and former wide receiver Andre Johnson are some of the biggest names in the league. Last season, No. 1 receiver DeAndre Hopkins took advantage of Johnson’s release to become one of the NFL’s brightest stars.
A nightmarish quarterback carousel comprised of Brian Hoyer, Ryan Mallett, T.J. Yates, and Brandon Weeden combined to send the ball DeAndre Hopkins’s way 192 times, and with Arian Foster out for the season, there really was nowhere else for the ball to go in the Houston offense. Veteran wide receivers Nate Washington and Cecil Shorts III both had under 50 receptions in mediocre campaigns for the Houston Texans, while third-round rookie Jaelen Strong was a complete non-factor outside of a few touchdown catches.
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We always talk about how important Julio Jones is to the Atlanta Falcons or how much worse the New York Giants would be without Odell Beckham Jr. carrying the offense, but both elite wideouts have franchise passers on the squad. Hopkins? He had arguably the worst quarterback situation on his hands in 2015.
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Fans saw how much Antonio Brown‘s numbers fell when Michael Vick or Landry Jones played for Ben Roethlisberger, so it follows that Hopkins dealt with a similar disadvantage, even if he didn’t have Martavis Bryant or Markus Wheaton (both better receivers than Washington or Shorts) to pull targets away from him.
For all intents and purposes, Hopkins was the Texans squad in 2015, and you would think that playing around a bunch of subpar players would be frustrating beyond all measure. Instead, Hopkins has embraced the fact that his name is now synonymous with the organization, as he’s well on his way to becoming a Texans legend after stating his desire to spend his career with the Texans.
From the Houston Chronicle’s Aaron Wilson:
"“If I can play my whole career here, I would. I love this place. This organization took a chance on drafting me. You have to look at that.”"
The honest- and slightly cynical- part of me would like to add that the Texans didn’t really take much of a “chance” when they drafted Hopkins. His excellent hands, polished route-running, 6’3″ frame, and ability to track the ball in the air made him one of the safest prospects in the class and a sure-fire first-round pick for a team that needed to find Johnson a partner badly.
That said, Hopkins’s 4.57 forty time wasn’t the best, and the man who has been compared to Roddy White so often was seen as a player with some athletic limitations.
Those limitations have shown up after the catch, where Hopkins finished 140th in the league in despite amassing over 1,500 receiving yards. In fact, his 173 yards after the catch tied him with Minnesota Vikings seldom-used, trade bust Mike Wallace.
His 1.6 yards after the catch per reception is a seemingly gruesome total , and it can be counted as the only true weakness to Nuk’s impressive game. In fact, Hopkins himself said, as per the Houston Chronicle’s Aaron Wilson, that he would like to become a more effective receiver after the catch, which was a minor complaint against him as a draft prospect.
That said, his former teammate Sammy Watkins– one of the NFL’s most explosive players last season with 17.5 yards per reception, nine TDs, and 100 yards per game after demanding more targets– had just 2.8 yards after the catch per reception. Pierre Garcon? 2.3. And nobody would call him stiff or unable to make moves on the field.
The fact that Hopkins admits he needs to do better with the ball in his hands is confirmation that it is indeed something that needs improvement, and it also confirms the fact that he has the work ethic and desire to round out those rough edges to his game. Dynamic plays, carrying a team, wanting to be the future of the organization, and putting in the hours to get better are all the marks of an NFL icon (Watt, Foster, and Johnson, for example, check off all these boxes).
Hopkins finished the 2015 season third in the NFL in receiving yards per game, third in receptions, third in targets, and tied for seventh in receiving touchdowns despite playing for a team that was 21st in the league in scoring.
Nobody would doubt the idea that Hopkins has nowhere to go but up, since it seems like he’s destined to have an even better fourth season in the league. His sophomore season’s 76/1,210/6 line was excellent, and he averaged 15.9 yards per reception as one of the most efficient receivers in the business, breaking out by taking advantage of the attention Johnson took up. In 2015? Hopkins proved he could be the lead dog, bettering Johnson’s numbers as the Texans No. 1 receiver, and he didn’t have a great WR2 (like himself) or a great running back (Foster was injured, after all) to take pressure off of him.
ESPN NFL Nation’s Tania Ganguli strongly predicts that Hoyer, who is unquestionably (and sadly) the best QB on Houston’s roster, will not be the Texans starter in 2016. A big offseason of change is ahead for this Houston offense, since the defense has already proven that it’s good enough to carry the team with the likes of Watt and Whitney Mercilus shining.
Whether the Texans offseason of change includes major running back help or wide receiver help remains to be seen, but those are big needs. However, the Texans will almost certainly bring in a new QB, and there’s optimism he will be an upgrade for Hopkins. Will they spend a pick on that QB in the first round? Will they steal Ezekiel Elliott instead? Is Baylor star receiver Corey Coleman a possibility even after spending a Day 2 pick on Strong in last year’s draft?
With so many questions surrounding the Texans offense this offseason, including ones around free agent starting offensive linemen Brandon Brooks and Ben Jones, it’s nice to know that Hopkins is “The Answer”. Got a problem? Just throw the ball in his direction.
Let me leave you with one final thought, and it’s more of a secret. You know Hopkins’s “huge weakness”? His lack of YAC? Well, in 2014 with someone taking pressure off of him on the other side (Johnson) in an offense that wasn’t hopeless beyond him, Nuk averaged 5.1 yards after the catch per reception.
He was only 32nd in YAC overall, but he averaged more YAC per catch than the likes of Dez Bryant, Julian Edelman, Antonio Brown, T.Y. Hilton, Emmanuel Sanders, and Brandin Cooks.
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Most people don’t understand NFL stats, so I’ll boil it down for you: deep throws or throws into traffic lead to lower YAC. Yeah, those were most of Hopkins’s targets…and for good reason. When you are the offensively-challenged Texans, you want to take advantage of Hopkins’s hands, catch radius, and overall ability to catch everything thrown near him.