Arizona Cardinals star WR DeAndre Hopkins has been suspended six games for violating the NFL’s PED policy.
Reports say a test in November returned “trace elements of a banned substance” and that tests in both bookending months were clean.
“Nuk” denies the allegations.
“I was confused and shocked,” Hopkins tweeted. “I am very mindful of what I put in my body and have always taken a holistic approach, so I am working with my team to investigate how this could’ve happened.
“But even as careful as I have been, clearly I wasn’t careful enough. For that, I apologize to Cardinals fans, my teammates, and the entire Cardinals organization. I never want to let my team down. I fully intend to get to the bottom of this. As soon as I have more information I will share it.”
Hopkins, who turns 30 on June 6, will be allowed to practice and play during the preseason, but he’s gone when the regular season begins.
He missed seven total regular-season games last year (hamstring, MCL) as well as the Wild Card loss to the eventual Super Bowl champion L.A. Rams. He had knee surgery in December. Hopkins finished 2021 with 572 yards and eight touchdowns on 42 catches, a year removed from having a 1,407-yard campaign.
He played the first seven years of his career with the Texans before spending the last two in Arizona.
