The NFL news just keeps on coming, and this time it’s not so great for either the Arizona Cardinals or fantasy football managers. DeAndre Hopkins, the All-Pro and fantasy superstar wide receiver, has been suspended six games for a violation of the NFL’s Performance Enhancing Drug policy, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
The news is a gut punch to an offense that seemingly improved itself with the addition of Marquise Brown. (Maybe the Cardinals knew the Hopkins news was coming?) The suspension means Hopkins will miss about a third of the fantasy season, which pushes him from a borderline No. 1 fantasy receiver to more of a No. 3 option in redrafts. It also means that selecting Hopkins will require having to draft more wideout depth in an attempt to ease his absence. That might not be worth the trouble for some.
In the meantime, Brown will see a nice uptick in value as the projected No. 1 wideout in Hopkins’s absence. He’ll go from being drafted as a No. 3 or 4 fantasy receiver to more of a No. 2 or 3 option. Of course, that status will only be in place until Hopkins’s return. The news also gives A.J. Green and Rondale Moore some added value in drafts, but Green will remain more of a No. 5 wideout while Moore moves into No. 3 or 4 territory.
Zach Ertz, who was a top-five tight end in 11 games with the Cardinals due in part to Hopkins’s absence from the lineup, also sees a bump in stock. He became one of the top targets in the offense for Kyler Murray, whose value will take an obvious, if temporary hit. He remains a No. 1 fantasy option while Hopkins is out, but a less attractive one.
In four games without Hopkins in 2021, Murray failed to throw for multiple scores three times and was held to fewer than 275 passing yards in all four contests.
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