Arizona Cardinals get DeAndre Hopkins in trade return

It didn’t take long for the details of the Arizona Cardinals trade of David Johnson to come out

The Arizona Cardinals have started out the free agency period out in front of everyone else.  That is thanks to a trade of running back David Johnson for Houston Texans receiver DeAndre Hopkins.

After just announcing that Johnson had been traded, it was determined the loot coming back was even better.  The Cardinals traded Johnson and their second round pick this year and fourth round pick next year for Hopkins and a fourth rounder this year.

If you are grading the trade at home, this is a win for both teams but the Cardinals do seem to have gotten the better end of the deal.

There were rumors earlier in the day the Texans were looking to unload Hopkins, which is a bit of a head scratcher considering what they were trying to build in Houston.  However nothing the Texans do should ever surprise anyone.

Now the Cardinals get the receiver they want and likely eliminates them from going and getting a receiver in the first round of the NFL Draft.  Maybe it doesn’t change that plan but it certainly now seems less likely.

This could just hush general manager Steve Keim’s critics for awhile.  Not long because no matter how good Keim does in the draft, some fans will still complain about it anyway.

However even the harshest critics of Keim have to agree this is a home run for the Cardinals.  Sure, they have to part with a couple of picks, including a second rounder this year.

However, they part with Johnson’s salary which the Texans will pay, and they get co-number 1 receivers for a year or two and then Hopkins is the clear number one after Larry Fitzgerald retires.  Kyler Murray has been pining for CeeDee Lamb in the draft but this might just quiet that a bit for now.