After seven seasons in Houston, the Texans made the stunning decision to trade Hopkins to the Arizona Cardinals for running back David Johnson and a couple of draft picks. It’s a move that the Texans would come to regret – Johnson was off the team after two middling seasons, one draft pick was traded away and another didn’t pan out.

It might have taken 12 years as pro, multiple teams and a trade earlier this season, but DeAndre “Nuk” Hopkins will be suiting up Sunday for the Kansas City Chiefs with a chance to become a Super Bowl champion. The three-time first-team NFL All-Pro and Clemson great is finally on football’s greatest stage.

Both parts of that statement changed this season. After Hopkins got traded to the Kansas City Chiefs and finally experienced some winning — he was a part of two playoff wins in his first 11 seasons then doubled that total with the Chiefs last month — it came as he was practically a ghost in the offense.