DeAndre Hopkins knows the Houston food scene well.

Looking for a steakhouse? He recommends Steak 48. Have a hankering for some southern comfort? His choice is Turkey Leg Hut. Is barbecue calling for you? Killen's is his go-to.

But back in 2016, when it came time for Hopkins to take his new wide receivers coach with the Houston Texans out to dinner as an introduction, they somehow ended up at a — gasp — chain restaurant.

"So we’re sitting in Maggiano’s," said Sean Ryan, a Texans assistant coach from 2016 to 2018. "The offensive coordinator, George Godsey, said, ‘Hop, I thought you were a foodie.’ He says, ‘No, I am.’ He loved the Houston food scene. (Godsey) goes, ‘Why are we hanging out in Maggiano’s then?’

"It was me, and my wife was there as well. He goes, ‘I don’t know, man. I knew Coach was from New York and I thought him and his wife would love Italian food so here we are.’ "

At that point in his career, Hopkins was a budding superstar who had quickly established himself as a worthy replacement for Texans legend Andre Johnson and as the new face of the Texans' offense. On Sunday, when the Tennessee Titans play Houston at NRG Stadium, it will be the first time — eight years, four All-Pro teams and nearly 9,000 yards later — that Hopkins is returning as a visiting player since the Texans traded him to the Arizona Cardinals in 2020.

Hopkins still lives in Houston in the offseason. He says he has gotten to a point where he doesn't put any extra emphasis on playing against the Texans. For him, the trade is ancient history. He doesn't find any sense in holding on to resentment.

"I’m a man of Christ," he said. "I forgive."

Who DeAndre Hopkins was in Houston

With how quickly time moves in the NFL, it's easy to overlook just how dominant Hopkins was when the Texans decided to trade him. In the history of the NFL, there are only two other instances of a team dealing away a receiver who had amassed as many catches, yards and touchdowns as Hopkins had in the three years leading up to the trade.

Those other receivers were Antonio Brown and Davante Adams, who emerged as stars playing alongside likely Hall of Fame quarterbacks Ben Roethlisberger and Aaron Rodgers, respectively. In Hopkins' breakout years, he caught passes from the likes of Brian Hoyer, Ryan Mallett, T.J. Yates, Ryan Fitzpatrick, Brock Osweiler and Tom Savage.

"This guy still caught 100 balls a year," Sean Ryan said. "It didn’t matter who was throwing him the ball. I think people recognize that. I think people recognize, ‘Hey, this guy is great regardless of who he’s on the field with.’ "

And Hopkins did all of that following Johnson, a legend who was the star of the Texans' offense for a dozen years. Stan Hixon, Hopkins' receivers coach before Ryan, remembers being impressed with how Hopkins handled the pressure taking on the mantle of being the center of attention of fans and defenses alike.

"He was received very well," Hixon told The Tennessean. "I think they were upset that Andre was leaving because they didn’t want him to leave and we all felt that he might’ve had a couple years left in him. Then once it was done, it was done. Andre Johnson wasn’t walking back in that door. So Hop took over. Hopkins was the guy."

Now it's time for DeAndre Hopkins to make his return

Titans offensive coordinator Tim Kelly spent eight years in Houston, overlapping with Hopkins for the first six. When The Tennessean asked Kelly how he thinks Texans fans will receive Hopkins on Sunday, Kelly responded jokingly: "Better than me, probably."

Hopkins said he hopes there'll be love and support for him at NRG Stadium (noon CT, FOX). What he is most looking forward to is finding the familiar faces of team personnel and stadium staffers he hasn't seen in a while. Fans, too. He said he has always appreciated Texans fans, remembering how they backed him after his rookie season when the team went 2-14.

Mostly, though, this is a business trip, not a reunion tour. He's in Houston to play. But after the game, time allowing, he hopes to be able to take some Titans teammates on a tour of his favorite restaurants.

"I’ve got some spots maybe after the game," Hopkins said. "You know Houston food is a little heavy. You’ve got to eat that after the game, not before."

Nick Suss is the Titans beat writer for The Tennessean. Contact Nick at nsuss@gannett.com. Follow Nick on X, the platform formerly called Twitter, @nicksuss.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Tennessee Titans' DeAndre Hopkins playing at Houston 1st time since trade