Kenny Stills: Negativity about DeAndre Hopkins trade won’t get us anywhere

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The Texans’ decision to trade wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins and a 2020 fourth-round pick to the Cardinals for running back David Johnson, a 2020 second-round pick and a 2021 fourth-round pick has not been met with praise.

Responses have been almost universally negative about the move’s implications for the team on the field. Despite that, Texans head coach and General Manager Bill O’Brien said on Friday that it “was in the best interest of our team” because Hopkins was looking for more money with three years left on his current contract.

It’s not the first move that O’Brien has made since taking over control of personnel decisions that has left Texans fans scratching their heads or balling their fists. One fan asked Texans wide receiver Kenny Stills on Twitter if the players have the same dim view of O’Brien’s maneuvers.

Stills wrote that Hopkins will be missed, but that it is “crucial for us as a team and fanbase to move forward.”

“Negativity won’t get us anywhere,” Stills wrote.

Stills and other professional athletes are used to seeing teammates leave for one reason or another, so it will be easier for them to turn the page than for fans who were looking forward to seeing Hopkins in Houston for another season. Posting a winning season and advancing deeper into the playoffs than they did in 2019 would likely do the trick, though.