The Houston Texans trading three-time All-Pro receiver DeAndre Hopkins to the Arizona Cardinals was a shock that hit the NFL world on March 16, two days before the official start of free agency.
To Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson, who still shares a close bond with the former Clemson Tiger, the news was a huge surprise.
“I found out after a workout,” Watson told reporters on Saturday. “It was just of course out of the blue — different. I wasn’t expecting it, but like I said, that’s just the way the business goes. That’s something that I have pretty much no control of.”
The way that Watson views it, the franchise took the measures they felt necessary, and Hopkins “had to do what he had to do.”
Said Watson: “We still have a relationship, we still have a bond, but it was just different of course.”
Watson now has to develop new bonds with receiver Brandin Cooks, who the Texans traded with the Los Angeles Rams to acquire, and Randall Cobb, who Houston signed in free agency shortly after trading Hopkins. The philosophy prevailing NRG Stadium is the Texans can find success investing resources in an assortment of good players rather than one exemplary talent.
