It's hard to understand the dynamic, but some guys just aren't good practice players (Warner) but light it up when they play games. But for guys buried deep in the roster, it's practice performance that gets them game time. It was by default that Hopkins got playing time....and presto! Turns out the guy is a serious threat from the TE position and can step up on the biggest stage. Suddenly the Rams have a deep TE room, and this isn't even considering Mundt.
