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Cooper Kupp has been phenomenal for the Los Angeles Rams this season, leading the NFL in multiple statistics. In his first 10 games of the season, Kupp leads the league with 85 receptions, 1,141 yards, and 10 touchdowns through the air.
Given Kupp’s ability to get open, defenses are shading a ton of coverage to his side of the field. But when defenses are caught slipping and covering Kupp man-to-man, Matthew Stafford is making a concerted effort to get him the ball.
The only wide receivers getting targeted more in single coverage are Diontae Johnson, Keenan Allen, and Stefon Diggs. Allen is the only one of the bunch that is also doing the most of his damage out of the slot, similar to Kupp.
NFL receivers that are targeted the most often when they face single-man coverage:
36% — Diontae Johnson
34% — Keenan Allen
34% — Stefon Diggs
32% — Cooper Kupp
31% — Davante Adams
31% — Tyreek Hill
31% — Ja'Marr Chase
30% — D.J. Moore
30% — Justin Jefferson— Context Matters (@dwainmcfarland) November 24, 2021
Since Week 1, it was evident that Stafford and Kupp were going to have special chemistry this season. Besides the ongoing joke of Stafford and Kupp eating breakfast together in the offseason, the veteran signal-caller had high praise for Kupp before the season got underway.
There’s a reason why Kupp is among the top vote-getters for the Pro Bowl thus far. Jonathan Taylor is the only player in the NFL that has more votes as of now.
Kupp isn’t one of the flashiest wide receivers in the NFL and he’s certainly not the fastest. But whenever teams make the mistake of putting one guy on the shifty wideout, then there’s a good chance that Stafford is diverting his eyes in Kupp’s direction.