Hopkins downgraded to out

The Cardinals have downgraded WR DeAndre Hopkins (knee) to out for Sunday’s game against the Falcons. That boosts the target outlooks for WRs Marquise Brown and Greg Dortch, though all Cardinals will be catching passes from QB David Blough. There’s PPR upside to the 2 wideouts, but this isn’t an offense to get overly excited about

The Cardinals are planning on trading WR DeAndre Hopkins this offseason, according to The Score's Jordan Schultz. Hopkins has 2 years and $34.4 million left on his current contract but is expected to angle for a new deal this offseason, per Schultz. Arizona, meanwhile, looks to be entering a rebuild phase after canning HC Kliff Kingsbury and losing GM Steve Keim. Hopkins turns 31 in June but remained effective this past year, posting a 64-717-3 line across 9 games. He ranked 9th among WRs in PPR points per game and 18th among 80 qualifiers in yards per route run.

The Cardinals have already ruled WR DeAndre Hopkins (knee) out for this week. Without Hopkins last Sunday, TE Trey McBride and WR Greg Dortch tied for the lead with 25% target share apiece. WR Marquise Brown checked in 1 target behind them. Week 18, however, will find a much tougher defense in San Francisco. Check our Week 18 fantasy football rankings to see where everyone has landed.

Cardinals WR DeAndre Hopkins left Friday's practice with a knee injury that is expected to make him a game-time decision for Sunday against the Falcons, according to the team website. On top of that, Hopkins will also see his 4th QB of the season. Colt McCoy's concussion symptoms resurfaced Friday, meaning he'll miss the game. Arizona will start David Blough over Trace McSorley. Blough -- who started 5 games for the 2019 Lions -- will have been with the team less than 3 weeks come game time. The whole situation makes it tough to like any Cardinals pass-catchers for Week 17. We're not significantly downgrading the outlook for RB James Conner, however.

Who would have guessed that any NFL wideout would be excited to see Colt McCoy enter the huddle? Cardinals WR DeAndre Hopkins should feel that way when McCoy returns to action for this Sunday's game against the Falcons. Hopkins has been targeted on 37.1% of McCoy's pass attempts this season, drawing 11+ in every one of the QB's appearances. The 1st 2 came with WR Marquise Brown out, but Hopkins got 11 looks and tallied 7 catches the past 2 times with Brown back in the lineup. (Brown saw 8 targets in each of those contests.) Hopkins, of course, didn't have a target issue last week with QB Trace McSorley, who threw 10 passes his way. But Hopkins caught just 1 of those. He has caught at least 7 balls in every game that has involved McCoy. Atlanta arrives as the 6th-best scoring matchup for WRs, which obviously helps Hopkins. You'll find him prominent in our Week 17 WR rankings.

Cardinals WR DeAndre Hopkins drew 10 targets in Sunday night's OT loss to the Bucs, falling just 1 short of WR Greg Dortch's team lead. But he caught only 1 of them for 4 yards. WR Marquise Brown tallied 3 catches for 57 yards among 6 targets. Third-string QB Trace McSorley averaged just 4.8 yards per attempt on his 45 passes. We'll see whether QB Colt McCoy makes it back for a Week 17 date with the Falcons.