"I don't know, man. It's football. They get paid, too," said Hopkins in the NRG Stadium visiting locker room after being asked about the Titans offense being so flat and mustering just 187 total yards against his former team.
The 31-year-old receiver's saltiness was reserved for the end result on the field and not for the city where he spent the first seven years of his career.
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"It's always good being in Houston," said Hopkins, who was picked by the Texans in the first round of the 2013 draft. "I love the fans, love the city. I've still got a lot of love for the folks here."
Still, this isn't what he envisioned when he signed a two-year, $32 million with the Titans in the offseason after spending three years in Arizona. The Titans have used three different quarterbacks and will miss the playoffs after going 2-7 over the final two months of the season.
"I'm a competitor and I hate losing," Hopkins said of the 5-11 Titans, who wrap up their season against the Jaguars next week. "I hate losing in checkers, whatever it is, so it's always frustrating to lose."
Depite the mounting losses, Hopkins actually has had his best individual season since 2020, the year he was traded to Arizona for running back David Johnson and a second-round pick that ended up being Ross Blacklock, who lasted just two seasons in Houston and was elevated off the Titans practice squad this week to play against the Texans.
Hopkins' team-best seven catches for 72 yards Sunday put him over 1,000 receiving yards for the first time since 2020. He accomplished the feat five times in Houston.
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"Of course, going over 1,000 means a lot to me," Hopkins said. "No matter what the record says, you've got to have a little pride and take accountability in what you can do and what you can control."
Hopkins wasn't ready to evaluate anything that didn't have to do with him catching the ball. The Texans defense pressured Titans quarterbacks all day, resulting in a foot injury for rookie starter Will Levis that forced Ryan Tannehill into action. Levis and Tannehill were sacked six times, including two from Texans' rookie pass rusher Will Anderson Jr.
As far how that kind of relentless pressure affected Hopkins and the Titans passing game?
"That's a question that's above my pay grade," he said. "Only thing I can do is control what I can when the ball is thrown to me."
Hopkins, who was injured and missed the Cardinals' only playoff appearance during his Arizona tenure, still has another year left on his deal with the Titans and talked about "having faith" as a key to keeping him going despite having not appeared in a playoff game since the Texans' loss in Kansas City that ended the 2019 season.
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"My faith has been big since I came out the womb in Section 8 projects," he said.
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Titans' DeAndre Hopkins expresses love for Houston after Texans rout Tennessee - Houston Chronicle
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