DeAndre Hopkins spent three seasons with the Arizona Cardinals before his release in 2023, a run that included five Pro Bowl selections and a reputation as one of the league's more dependable receivers.
His time in Arizona also included a six-game suspension in 2022 after testing positive for a performance-enhancing substance, one that kept him out for the start of that season. Hopkins is now removed from the day-to-day of the NFL, working as a coach at Georgia Tech.
That history resurfaced on August 10, when Hopkins posted a message accusing former Cardinals general manager Steve Keim of playing a role in the failed test, referring to him as "Skeme Slime" before the post was deleted.
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Hopkins claimed he had been "set up" over the drug test, an accusation aimed directly at Keim, who was Arizona's GM at the time of the suspension.
Keim responded Tuesday evening, denying any involvement in the test or its outcome. In a statement shared on Instagram, he said he did not contaminate, alter, manipulate or interfere with Hopkins' drug test or its results, and had no part in causing the result that led to the suspension.
"DeAndre Hopkins recently published and then deleted a statement falsely suggesting that I was responsible for contaminating or manipulating the drug test associated with his 2022 NFL suspension," Keim said. "That accusation is completely false. I did not contaminate, alter, manipulate, interfere with, or cause anyone else to interfere with DeAndre's drug test or its results. I did not 'set him up' for a suspension, and I had no involvement in causing the test result that led to his suspension."
Keim also added that the allegation goes beyond a simple disagreement, calling it a direct challenge to his integrity and decades of work in the league.
He noted that Hopkins deleting the statement does not erase the damage already done by sharing it publicly.
Keim has retained attorney Raees Mohamed to protect his reputation and legal standing, and said relevant evidence is being reviewed and preserved as the matter moves through the appropriate channels.
