Could DeAndre Hopkins return to the Cardinals sooner than later?

As the Arizona Cardinals head into the 2021 playoffs, will their top wide receiver, DeAndre Hopkins, be back on the field to help the offense?

As the Arizona Cardinals prepare for their first playoff matchup since the 2015 season, the hope has been that they will see the return of some of their top players who have been dealing with injuries, specifically DeAndre Hopkins and J.J. Watt.

Watt appears to be on track to suit up for Monday night’s showdown against the Los Angeles Rams. However, Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury shared some disappointing news on Wednesday when he revealed that Hopkins will not be available for the team’s upcoming wild-card contest.

What Kingsbury revealed about the star wide receiver isn’t too surprising. But could Arizona potentially see Hopkins back on the field in the divisional round if they are able to defeat the Rams on Monday?

When will DeAndre Hopkins return to the field for the Arizona Cardinals?

With Hopkins already being ruled out for Monday night in Los Angeles, the attention turns to the chance of him re-joining the Cardinals offense for the second round of the playoffs.

The divisional round of the 2021 postseason will take place about six weeks after the Arizona receiver had surgery to repair a torn MCL in his knee. Six weeks is also the minimum amount of time that Hopkins was expected to miss after his surgery according to NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport.

So if the Cardinals are able to go into Los Angeles on Monday night and come away with a playoff victory over the Rams, there’s a very real possibility that Arizona could have Hopkins back on the field for their second-round postseason matchup.

The Cardinals getting him back in their offense would definitely be a huge boost to their chances of potentially competing for a championship this season. But first, Arizona must take care of business against Los Angeles on Monday.