For all of the complaining we have heard from NFL players about joint practices over the last week, it seems that not all of them think they are so bad.

Take Houston Texans wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins, for example, who is enjoying going up against Detroit Lions cornerback Darius Slay in their joint sessions:

“Going against your team is fun, but we go against those guys every day so being able to go up against other guys like Darius Slay [is beneficial],” Hopkins said, per Avery Duncan of Texans Wire.

Hopkins understands that Slay is one of the best cornerbacks in the game, having made it to back-to-back Pro Bowls, so he is happy to get some work in against one of the game's elite:

“Oh yeah, that was great work [facing Slay],” said Hopkins. “Darius is one of the best doing it right now, and he matched up against me well.”

Hopkins, who played his collegiate football at Clemson University, was originally selected by the Texans in the first round (27th pick overall) of the 2013 NFL Draft.
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Since entering the NFL, the 27-year-old has made three Pro Bowl appearances while earning First-Team All-Pro honors twice.