• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Phoenix Sports Today

Phoenix Sports News Continuously Updated

  • Cardinals
  • Diamondbacks
  • Coyotes
  • Basketball
    • Mercury
    • Suns
  • Soccer
  • Colleges
    • Arizona State
    • Grand Canyon University
    • Northern Arizona
    • University of Arizona

DeAndre Hopkins’ return after Week 6 ‘will be shot in the arm’ for Cardinals

May 14, 2022 by ArizonaSports.com - 98.7 FM

TEMPE — The narrative surrounding head coach Kliff Kingsbury and the Arizona Cardinals after last season largely focused on the team’s inability to finish off yet another season strong.

By now, we’ve all seen the trend. Since 2013, Kingsbury sports a 42-20-1 record in Games 1-7. The other half of the season? A 17-45 mark from Game 8 on.

The head coach acknowledged his part in the skid throughout the offseason, saying he needed to get more guys involved offensively and dial up different gameplans with wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins sidelined for most of the second half of the year.

RELATED STORIES
  • Arizona Cardinals early season 3-game gauntlet in 2022

  • Arizona Cardinals rookies more than ready to attack Year 1

  • Arizona Cardinals’ 2022 full schedule released, tickets available

  • Arizona Cardinals to play 4 primetime games in 2022

  • Arizona Cardinals’ J.J. Watt: ‘I wanna leave this game with a damn trophy’

Unlike seasons past, however, Kingsbury not only has to contend with righting the second-half-of-the-season ship, he’s got to get through the first six games of the season without Hopkins due to a performance-enhancing drug suspension.

All the talk must now translate to on the field for Kingsbury.

But instead of looking at the glass half empty, the head coach is remaining optimistic.

“(Got to learn from that), obviously,” Kingsbury said following the first day of rookie minicamp on Friday. “The addition of Marquise (Brown) will help, he’s a dynamic playmaker and we just have to play better as an offense.

“It’s unfortunate that he won’t be available but I’m excited for when we get him back. We’ve struggled in the second half of the season and when we get him back I think it will be a real shot in the arm for that back-half and I know we’ll get his best.”

With DeAndre Hopkins sidelined with a suspension to start the season, head coach Kliff Kingsbury said the #AZCardinals must learn from last year’s failings when the WR was on the shelf.

Added the addition of Marquise Brown certainly helps. pic.twitter.com/F1FohEsqkF

— Tyler Drake (@Tdrake4sports) May 13, 2022

Despite the team going out and acquiring Brown in a draft-day trade with the Baltimore Ravens, replacing Hopkins will be a tough task.

He only played in 10 games last season, yet still paced the Cardinals with eight receiving touchdowns.

And when he was off the field, the offense took a noticeable dip in production.

With teams not having to keep an extra eye out for Hopkins on the regular, the offense sputtered with A.J. Green, Christian Kirk, Antoine Wesley and Rondale Moore as Arizona’s top wide-receiving threats.

Now it’ll be on Brown and quarterback Kyler Murray to reconnect to their Oklahoma days and make up for Hopkins’ absence over what is going to be a tough start to the season, beginning with the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 1.

“We’re going to see where he fits, first and foremost,” Kingsbury said. “We like what we have in A.J. coming back, Rondale, Zach Ertz, now Hollywood. Now we just got to figure out where he fits best.

“That type of speed, whether it’s inside, outside … it’s dangerous. He was behind people a bunch last year and we got to find ways to maximize him.”

EXTRA POINT

– Kingsbury on if the team knew about Hopkins’ suspension before trading for Brown:

“That’s more of a Steve (Keim) question. He’s really good at his job.”

Follow @Tdrake4sports

Filed Under: Cardinals

Primary Sidebar

Recent Posts

  • Diamondbacks Reacts Survey: Trade Deadline Strategy
  • Diamondbacks Gameday Thread, #85: 7/1 vs. Giants
  • The Suns didn’t win free agency, but they have begun course correction
  • From Villain to Valley? What Dillon Brooks brings to the Phoenix Suns
  • (no title)

Categories

Archives

Our Partners

All Sports

  • 247 Sports
  • ArizonaSports.com - 98.7 FM
  • Bleacher Report
  • Heat Waved
  • OurSports Central
  • The Arizona Republic
  • The Sports Fan Journal
  • USA Today

Baseball

  • Arizona Diamondbacks
  • AZ Snake Pit
  • Last Word On Baseball
  • MLB Trade Rumors
  • Venom Strikes

Basketball

  • Phoenix Suns
  • Amico Hoops
  • Basketball Insiders
  • Bright Side Of The Sun
  • High Post Hoops
  • Hoops Hype
  • Hoops Rumors
  • Last Word On Pro Basketball
  • Pro Basketball Talk
  • Real GM
  • Valley Of The Suns

Football

  • Arizona Cardinals
  • Cardinals Gab
  • Cards Wire
  • Deep Dive
  • Last Word On Pro Football
  • NFL Trade Rumors
  • Our Turf Football
  • Pro Football Rumors
  • Pro Football Talk
  • Raising Zona
  • Revenge Of The Birds
  • Words From The Birds

Hockey

  • Elite Prospects
  • Five For Howling
  • Howlin Hockey
  • Last Word On Hockey
  • Pro Hockey Rumors
  • Pro Hockey Talk
  • The Hockey Writers

Soccer

  • Last Word on Soccer
  • MLS Multiplex

College

  • AZ Desert Swarm
  • Busting Brackets
  • College Football News
  • College Sports Madness
  • Devils In Detail
  • House Of Sparky
  • Last Word On College Basketball - Univ of Arizona
  • Saturday Blitz
  • Zags Blog
  • Zona Zealots

Copyright © 2025 · Magazine Pro on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in