DeAndre Hopkins' knee injury will sideline him for "several weeks," coach Brian Callahan confirmed to reporters Saturday, but the receiver did avoid surgery.
That's decent news for the veteran receiver. There's another silver lining in this situation, too: Hopkins' teammates are going to receive more opportunities to prove their worth to the Titans' new coaching staff.
Chief among those being asked to step up: third-year receiver Treylon Burks.
"It's a chance for guys to get more opportunities and you get to see what they're going to make of them," Callahan said, via The Tennessean. "Treylon's probably the one that benefits the most at that position. We're going to get some looks at him as a starting receiver for us when D-Hop's out. So I'm excited about that. When you get opportunities to see guys do more. I think Trey's had a really nice camp. We've seen good things and now we're going to get the chance to see more."
Burks needs the chance. As a first-round pick out of Arkansas in 2022, Burks was expected to replace A.J. Brown in Tennessee, but he hasn't come anywhere close to producing at the same level as Brown did with the Titans. Entering Year 3, now is the time for Burks to prove he can be an important contributor in Tennessee's offense, especially as the Titans move within a year of the deadline on his fifth-year option.
As of now, they likely won't pick it up. He can change that with a breakout 2024 season.
He seems keenly aware of the importance of the upcoming season, even if such an opportunity comes at the cost of losing Hopkins for the rest of August.
"Man, I'll just be honest. It sucks because I look up to Hop a lot," Burks said, via Turron Davenport of ESPN. "But he just told me to just do what I do, go out there and just take care of business. That's what I've been doing before the injury even happened, just going out there and having fun. I'm just going to continue to keep doing what I'm doing."
It's too early to tell whether Burks is poised for a big season, but the tone of Callahan and Burks suggests it could be coming. And if Burks can prove himself worthy of consideration in Hopkins' absence, the Titans might find themselves uncovering a pleasant surprise in their receiving corps this fall.
