TEMPE, Ariz. — New Arizona Cardinals wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins thinks he’s the best pass-catcher in the NFL despite not having the type of consistency with quarterbacks that some of his peers have. And now that he’ll be paired with reigning rookie of the year Kyler Murray in a pass-happy offense, Hopkins believes he’ll put up the numbers to prove his belief.
“I definitely think I’m the best,” Hopkins said Thursday on the Jalen & Jacoby Show. “I know I’m the best. Mike’s my boy. I love [Saints wide receiver] Michael [Thomas] … but he knows if I had Drew Brees my whole career what these numbers would be. [Falcons wide receiver] Julio Jones knows if I had Matt Ryan my whole career. That’s my boy. I trained with Julio, too. He knows what these numbers would be.
“Those guys are definitely blessed to be in a position where, their whole career, they had a Pro Bowl quarterback — quarterback that they spent multiple seasons with. But I don’t complain. I don’t make excuses. I go out there and work.”
Hopkins caught passes from 10 different quarterbacks since he was drafted by the Houston Texans in 2013, but he had his most success — and most stability — with DeShaun Watson, who was drafted in 2017.
With Watson at quarterback, Hopkins caught 268 passes for 3,373 yards and 25 touchdowns in 38 games.
Hopkins’ yards from Watson were the eighth-most during that span. Overall, Hopkins has the third-most receiving yards since 2017 with 4,115 behind Jones and Thomas.
Finding stability with Murray like he had with Watson has been a point of excitement for Hopkins.
“Going into this situation with a guy, a young quarterback, that I know is gonna be my quarterback for the future, is great,” Hopkins said. “We’re able to build a chemistry, and hopefully, I’m able to play more than three seasons with a quarterback. I don’t think I’ve done that yet. So, I’m excited just to see how I’ll be able to play with a consistent quarterback.”
Hopkins was 11th in receiving last season with 1,165 yards along with seven touchdowns.
Since 2013, Hopkins has the third-most receiving yards and catches, second-most touchdowns and most targets in the NFL.
Playing with one quarterback and playing in a pass-happy offense has Hopkins believing he can fit into Kliff Kingsbury’s high-octane scheme “very well” and put up better numbers than he already has in his illustrious career.
“Oh yeah, absolutely,” Hopkins said. “Obviously I’ve played with a lot of quarterbacks and put up great numbers, being in offenses that necessarily weren’t a pass-first offense. So, myself, being a receiver, of course I see my stats going up.
“We have other great receivers out there — Christian Kirk, Larry Fitzgerald and a lot of other guys out there — but I definitely see myself having one of my more productive seasons.”