The brewing saga between former Arizona Cardinals receiver DeAndre Hopkins and general manager Steve Keim has taken a drastic turn. It started on August 10, when Hopkins accused Keim, whom the receiver referred to as “Skeme Slime,” of setting him up to fail his 2022 drug test.
The former Cardinals receiver, who’s now a coach at Georgia Tech, has since deleted his tweet. But that didn’t stop the former Cardinals GM from taking it seriously. Arizona Sports radio host John Gambadoro addressed the accusation hurled toward Keim, who has since retained legal counsel.
This came on the heels of a report linking the former Cardinals GM to an e-commerce scheme that targeted NFL players, which cost them more than $1 million. Keim’s partner, Mohamed Coulibaly, was found dead on August 3.
Hopkins missed the first six games of the 2022 season, both his and Keim’s final year with the Cardinals. Keim was sacked following a 4-13 season, replaced by current GM Monti Ossenfort, and Hopkins was released from the team the same offseason.
Former Cardinals Manager Issues Statement to DeAndre Hopkins Accusation
GettyDeAndre Hopkins played for the Arizona Cardinals from 2020 to 2022. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
After retaining counsel, former Cardinals GM Steve Keim’s representatives released a statement to Pro Football Talk in response to Hopkins’ accusation.
“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. 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.
“Accusing someone of deliberately interfering with an NFL drug test is an extraordinarily serious allegation. It attacks my integrity, my professional reputation, and the work I spent decades building in the National Football League. The fact that the statement was later deleted does not undo the damage caused by publishing it to a large public audience.
“I have retained counsel, Raees Mohamed, Esq., to aggressively address this matter and to protect my reputation and legal rights. The relevant evidence is being reviewed and preserved, and this matter will be handled through the appropriate channels.
“I have no intention of engaging in a public back-and-forth or litigating this issue on social media. But I also will not remain silent when I am falsely accused of conduct that I did not commit.
“DeAndre’s accusation concerning my involvement in his drug test is false. I unequivocally deny it.”
Ex-Cardinals GM Steve Keim Retains Legal Counsel
Steve Keim announced that he has retained Raees Mohamed in his statement given to PFT. Mohamed is a founding partner of the firm RM Warner Law, and has been practicing since 2009.
From their website, RM Warner Law is a Scottsdale-based firm that specializes in business and defamation law. Mohamed himself specializes in internet and e-commerce law, according to his bio.
From the statement’s wording, it appears that the former Cardinals GM is determined to take his former player to court over that since-deleted tweet to protect his reputation. Keim told Gambadoro he feels confident he can win his case.
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