DeAndre Hopkins tenure as a Houston Texan was nothing short of masterful.
According to The Football Database, the 2013 first-round selection holds three of the highest receiving touchdown seasons in team history recording 11 touchdowns in both 2015 and 2018. None, however, topped the 2017 record-setting campaign, in which Hopkins recorded 13 touchdown receptions.
According to ESPN, Hopkins had two games with multiple touchdowns that season and finished with at least one score in 11 out of the team’s 16 games.
Making matters more impressive, Hopkins put up these gaudy touchdown numbers despite a less-than-ideal quarterback situation. Then rookie signal-caller Deshaun Watson started the season's first seven games with a bang before a torn ACL sidelined him for the rest of the campaign.
For the remainder of the 2017 season, the Houston Texans rode with the two-headed attack of Tom Savage and T.J. Yates behind center, with the two combining for nine touchdowns and nine interceptions and an average completion percentage of 52.3% according to Pro Football Reference.
In lieu of the circumstances, Hopkins still was able to record six of his 13 touchdowns after Watson’s injury. His best performance of the season came on December 10th against the San Fransisco 49ers. In the loss, Hopkins dominated the opposing secondary, hauling in 11 receptions on 16 targets for 149 yards and two touchdowns according to ESPN.
Furthermore, it proved around league circles that Hopkins was and continues to be one of the NFL’s premier security blankets, with the star wideout consistently elevating the play of his quarterbacks throughout his time as a Houston Texan.
Despite the team finishing 4-12 in 2017, Hopkins breaking the Texans' franchise record for receiving touchdowns amidst the quarterback chaos, remains one of the more impressive feats in franchise history and one that will not be quickly forgotten.