DeAndre Hopkins is still without a team as the 2026 season gets closer, but he subtly gave a hint about who he wishes to play moving forward. During a recent interview with Kay Adams, Hopkins had plenty of praise for both the Cincinnati Bengals and Joe Burrow.

“Joe Burrow is one of the best in the game. I’ve admired Joe since he was at LSU, since he was beating up on my Clemson Tigers.” DeAndre Hopkins said (via @heykayadams), “Joe is one of the best to do it.”

He also mentioned he’d be more than comfortable lining up in the slot, a role that fits exactly what the Bengals are looking for on offense.

Hopkins and Burrow recently teamed up at the Fanatics Flag Football Classic. During that game, Burrow connected with Hopkins for a big touchdown. Hopkins flashed his ability to get downfield and dominate in one-on-one coverage.

Burrow might seem like a great fit for him. He played eight games in the 2025 season and put up 1,809 passing yards, 17 touchdowns, and five interceptions. He also earned his third Pro Bowl selection.

That said, the Bengals’ defense struggled, finishing near the bottom of the league with an average of 380.9 yards allowed.

Even with all that, DeAndre Hopkins could still be a really solid pickup for the Bengals. His projected market value is around $1.49 million per year, according to Spotrac. With roughly $22.66 million in cap space, bringing him in feels pretty reasonable financially.

Since Cincinnati does not look like it is chasing big-name, expensive signings right now, adding someone like Hopkins on a cheaper deal could fit in smoothly. At the same time, it would still give Joe Burrow another dependable target without shaking up their budget.

It is also worth noting that this is not the first time Hopkins has hinted at where he might want to go next.

DeAndre Hopkins posts cryptic messages amid Bengals free agency rumors.

In his interaction with Kay Adams, he was asked about the little “Easter egg” tweets he’s posting lately.

She says, “You’re tweeting these little Easter eggs. We got the Tiger,” referring to his recent post.

That post went live on March 21, 2026, where Hopkins shared just a tiger emoji on X. There was no caption, but fans quickly started guessing it might be a hint that he could join the Cincinnati Bengals this offseason, since their mascot is a Bengal tiger, “Who Dey.”

Hopkins played the 2025 season with the Baltimore Ravens on a one-year, $5 million deal, which has now expired, making him a free agent. His production last season was unusually low, with 22 catches for 330 yards in 17 games, with three starts, and just two touchdowns. Those ended up being the lowest totals of his 13-year career in both yards and touchdowns.

Before his time in Baltimore, Hopkins had stints with the four NFL teams, including the Texans, who drafted him in the first round of the 2013 NFL Draft. Over his full NFL career, he has put up 1,006 receptions for 13,295 yards and 85 touchdowns.

Earlier in his career, Hopkins had shown interest in joining Cincinnati when Brian Callahan was the Bengals’ offensive coordinator. That connection is not there anymore, though, since Callahan has moved on and now works as the quarterbacks coach and passing game coordinator for the New York Giants.

So while it still looks like Hopkins might be eyeing Cincinnati, the Cincinnati Bengals could definitely use him, too. Bringing him in as a low-cost red zone option just makes sense, and it still gives them room to focus on fixing the defense in the 2026 NFL Draft.