HOUSTON — Texans fans weren’t the only ones shocked when the team traded All-Pro receiver DeAndre Hopkins to the Arizona Cardinals for running back David Johnson.
The trade didn’t make sense to a lot of people across the country and beyond.
But in an interview Wednesday on ESPN’s “Get Up,” former Dallas Cowboys legend Michael Irvin shed some light on why it happened.
Irvin said he was stunned by the trade, so he called Hopkins.
“There’s no way they give up one of the best receivers in the NFL for a ham sandwich like they did,” Irvin said.
He said Hopkins took the high road the first time they talked, so Irvin called him again late Tuesday.
Hopkins told Irvin there was a power struggle between him and Bill O’Brien because the coach/GM thought Hopkins “had too much influence over the locker room.
Irvin said the two met to hash things out and that’s when things went south.
“He [O’Brien] said ‘the last time I had to have a meeting like this, it was with Aaron Hernandez,’” Hopkins told Irvin.
Hernandez is the former New England Patriot who was convicted of murder and later accused of a double homicide. He took his own life in prison.
Hopkins told Irvin he was shocked.
“He said, ‘Michael, that blew my mind he would even bring that up. I’ve never been in any trouble. I don’t know why he would equate me with Aaron Hernandez,’” Irvin told ESPN.
And that’s not all, according to Irvin.
“He told DeAndre that he doesn’t like that he has his ‘baby mamas’ around sometimes,” Irvin said. “And from that, the relationship just deteriorated.”
“I cannot believe what I just heard. I legit cannot believe what I just heard,” ESPN’s Marcus Spears said after the interview.
Spears said he believes Hopkins would confide in Irvin because he’s a mentor to a lot of NFL receivers and they often look to him for advice.
Hopkins later downplayed the incident and tweeted "This is being blown way out of proportion.".
Hopkins spent his entire seven-year career with the Texans, including being named a first-team All-Pro three times and making four Pro Bowls.
Hopkins started 15 games for the Texans in 2019-20 with 104 receptions for 1165 yards and 7 touchdowns. He has 632 receptions for 8,602 yards and 54 TDs for his career.
Last season, Johnson started nine out of 13 games and only rushed for 345 yards with 2 TDs. He had another 370 yards on 36 receptions.
We reached out to the Texans about Irvin's allegations but haven't heard back yet.