Tennessee Titans Fantasy Outlook: Can DeAndre Hopkins Be Dominant with Ryan Tannehill?
Now that DeAndre Hopkins has finally been signed by the Tennessee Titans, it's time to take a look at his fantasy impact in 2023. Both how he will perform and how he will impact the other players on his new offense.
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Fantasy Impact of DeAndre Hopkins Signing
This wasn't the best landing spot for Hopkins, but it also wasn't the worst. He will certainly step in immediately as the unquestioned WR1 in Tennessee. After a down 2021 season and a PEDs suspension that cost him the first eight games of 2022, he's coming off an excellent campaign in which he caught 64 passes for 717 yards and three TDs despite all kinds of issues at quarterback for the Arizona Cardinals. Now at 31 years old, we no longer anticipate him being the elite WR1 he was back in his last 16-game season campaign of 2020 when he went for 115-1,407-6 during his first season with the Cardinals, but he could still be a strong WR2 with the upside to approach WR1 numbers.
His supporting cast in Tennessee won't be great, but they should be good enough and offset by an excellent coaching staff. Currently, he's being drafted as the WR20, however, that hasn't been adjusted since he is now actually on an NFL roster. We view him as a guy who should be drafted as a fringe WR1-high-end WR2. He will likely eventually land somewhere between 12-15 in our wide receiver rankings. 80 receptions, 1,000-plus yards, and six-to-eight touchdowns are all very realistic targets for Hopkins to hit this season. If you are drafting today his ADP will likely be all over the place, nevertheless, it will be interesting to see exactly where it settles at in a few weeks.
Ryan Tannehill Desperately Needed Hopkins
The addition of D-Hop is tremendous news for Tannehill who isn't only playing for his starting job, but possibly his career at this point. He will enter this season at 34 years old and hasn't been a valuable fantasy option since 2020 when he threw for 3,819 yards, 33 TDs, and just seven interceptions. The Titans made an attempt to replace him with Malik Willis in the 2022 NFL Draft, nevertheless, Willis got his shot last year after Tannehill went down with an injury and things went about as bad as you can imagine. In the 2023 NFL Draft, they tried again with Will Levis who many believe we will see at some point this season and the Titans hope with better results. Anything we say here will apply to any starting QB for the Titans this season if you don't believe it will be Tannehill for the majority of the season like we do.
Hopkins gives his quarterback a true WR1 even at his current age. He stepped in last season and immediately became the guy despite being on the same field as Hollywood Brown and ROndale Moore. This is the type of wide receiver who can help Tannehill survive the season at QB and perhaps earn himself a shot to start somewhere next season. The Titans also now look like they could at least compete to make the playoffs this season. As long as this team has a shot at the playoffs we don't anticipate Tannehill losing his job. Still, his current ADP has him as the QB32. That number should spike, but we still have him just out of the QB2 conversation and looking in at around the QB26 spot.
Derrick Henry Fantasy Outlook
The hope here is that teams will no longer be able to stack the box against Henry like they did last season and have for the majority of his career. While we still expect him to get plenty of attention from defenses, Hopkins should definitely help the situation. He's still not a guy you can just leave in single coverage and expect the cornerback to shut him down. Most NFL corners will need safety help when dealing with Hopkins or it will be a long day. We believe Henry still has enough left in the tank to be a high-end RB1 for at least one more season and this move will only further our confidence on the stance.
Treylon Burks Fantasy Outlook
There are two ways to look at this move for Burks and it really depends on how you view him. If you projected Burks to be an elite WR1 then this signing is nothing short of disastrous for him. However, if you do not think he was good enough to be a true WR1 and consistently beat top coverages then this could be good news. There is no doubt that this signing caps the upside of Burks this season. If you drafted him banking on him getting elite WR1 targets and having a massive breakout potential this is a tough blow for your fantasy team. That is now off the table. There is a real chance that this helps him, especially in dynasty leagues but even in redrafts. If Burks wasn't ready to be the WR1 having Hopkins opposite him to eat up top coverages could propel him from a potential bust to a solid flex option who you can get at a much cheaper price this season. Learning the game from Hopkins could also be invaluable for the remainder of his career. Long term, this is good news for Burks. This season, it's a tough break for owners who were hoping he was on his way to being a breakout star.
Chigoziem Okonkwo Fantasy Outlook
After this signing, it seemed that Fantasy Twitter was writing a eulogy for Chig's 2023 fantasy season. He has climbed all the way up to being drafted as a low-end TE1, but there is a real chance that his value takes a hit after this. We couldn't agree less. Hopkins's presence should open up the field and give the athletic young TE more room to operate. We were one of the first sites in on him last year and we still anticipate a major breakout season this year. Hopkins joining this offense will only help him as the team will now be on the field longer, score more TDs, and will not be able to focus on Okonkwo. If you have been drafting him as a TE1 confidently continue to do so, and you haven't been you should be.
