Two weeks ago, Deandre Hopkins negotiated a two-year contract extension worth $54.5 million with the Arizona Cardinals. That keeps him with the team through 2024 and essentially makes him the highest-paid player in NFL history who is not a quarterback over those two seasons. The coverage regarding this record-breaking receiver contract has mainly been focused on the dollar amount and not the self-education for Hopkins. He credits himself with at least 90% of the success with contract negotiations. This is another huge leap forward for players looking to remain in the driver’s seat when their money’s on the line.
Hopkins cutting ties with CAA Sports was not done out of unjust management, simply a desire for control. His camp is built around family, mentors, and financial analyzers. Reshaping the social structure of sport’s management and player agency will be a difficult task for years to come, but it is far from improbable. Hopkins’ goal to one day help build a franchise into a championship contender will inspire many young athletes.
Hopkins brokered a no-franchise tag and a no-trade clause into his deal which prevents the Cardinals from trading Hopkins while under this new contract. The plus side of not agreeing to a franchise tag is that Hopkins will be paid what he negotiated for, instead of a league average for his position. He also struggled with learning the Cardinal’s playbook while simultaneously self-educating himself on contractual terminology, but ultimately he was satisfied with the outcome.
“It’s ownership and me believing in myself and my abilities to study the terminology of contracts and me knowing where I want to be after football,” Hopkins said this week, via The Arizona Republic. “I know one day I want to be a part of an organization and help build it, so I feel like this was a good time to learn and study everything that hopefully, I’ll one day be doing.”
