How Could the Bills Make the Finances Work?
The Buffalo Bills salary cap situation is well-known. They have made some wise decisions to open up room and brought back their own superstar safety Jordan Poyer on an incredibly team-friendly deal that has afforded them more financial flexibility this offseason than expected. However, they still have limited space, and Hopkins will not come cheaply.
Hopkins is currently under contract for 2 more seasons at $19.45 million and $14.915 million respectively. As is, he would not fit on the Bills roster with them remaining under the cap. Any deal would have to include restructuring of Hopkins deal. This could come in the form of moving some money to bonuses or working out some type of extension that would decrease the cap hit for Hopkins in the next year or two.
Brandon Beane has been able to work this type of deal consistently in order to maintain a solid cap situation, however given the large contracts the Bills have already committed to, along with restructuring the Bills would likely need to send a player with a large contract either back to Arizona, or out of Buffalo in a separate trade.
Ed Oliver seems like the most obvious candidate as he currently has a cap hit of over $10 million, has not developed into the star that the Bills had hoped for when they drafted him and does not seem to be part of the Bills long-term plans. If the Bills were to trade Oliver, look for them to be aggressive in filling holes on their defensive line early in the 2023 NFL Draft.
Should the Buffalo Bills trade for DeAndre Hopkins?
The Buffalo Bills could definitely make a trade for DeAndre Hopkins work. The upside of pairing him across the field from Diggs to give Josh Allen an elite group of weapons in the passing game is not something the Bills should pass on lightly. It seems like they have the pieces to make a deep playoff run and Hopkins is the type of acquisition that could take them from contenders to Super Bowl favorites.
As a fan, it is impossible not to root for Brandon Beane to find a way to add a player like DeAndre Hopkins. So, I guess since this is an article written by a fan, the short answer to the question “Should the Bills Trade for Wide Receiver DeAndre Hopkins?” is a simple “yes”.