Tag: Cooper Kupp

The 3 stats that will define Super Bowl LVI

One big game. Three big stats.

Super Bowl week is always superfluous with one characteristic: Overanalysis.

The lead-up to Bengals (+4.5) and Rams — one odd Super Bowl to have on paper — has been no different. The usual overabundance of narratives and breakdowns and extended conversations about what can and will and might and should happen has been nonstop, utterly superfluous. All you can do is hope for a good game at a certain point.

On that note, there’s no need to put too much more thought into what will or could happen between Joe Burrow and Matthew Stafford’s bunches. Let’s make it simple, and let me put your mind at ease with three short numbers that ultimately tell us everything about Super Bowl LVI.

Rams’ Cooper Kupp named Offensive Player of the Year over Jonathan Taylor

Rams WR Cooper Kupp was voted the Offensive Player of the Year over Colts RB Jonathan Taylor.

Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Cooper Kupp was voted as the AP Offensive Player of the Year over Indianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor for the 2021 season.

Taylor had an extremely strong case for the award as the NFL’s leading running back. However, it was Kupp who won the award in a pretty favorable fashion.

Kupp led the way with 35 votes while Taylor was second on the list with 10 votes.

While Taylor was certainly deserving of the award, it’s easy to understand why Kupp was the winner. He led the NFL in receptions (145), receiving yards (1,947) and touchdown receptions (16). His receptions and receiving yards numbers are both the second-highest in a single season among wide receivers.

Kupp is now just the fourth player since the 1970 merger to earn the receiving triple crown and the first since 2005. He joins a club exclusive to only Jerry Rice (1990), Sterling Sharpe (1992) and Steve Smith (2005).

Taylor’s campaign was historic in its own right. He was the youngest player in NFL history to eclipse 1,800 rushing yards in a single season and the youngest player to ever record 2,000 scrimmage yards and 20 total touchdowns in a single season.

Taylor also set the franchise record for rushing yards and rushing touchdowns in a single season, surpassing Hall of Famer Edgerrin James.

Taylor did, however, earn the FedEx Ground Player of the Year for the 2021 season, which is typically given to league’s best running back.

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4 Rams players to watch vs. Bengals in Super Bowl LVI

The Rams’ biggest stars will need to step up in Super Bowl LVI on Sunday. Here are 4 players to watch against the Bengals.

The time has almost arrived for the Super Bowl to finally be played, which will take the place of the hypothetical scenarios we’ve created in our heads on how the game could unravel. The Cincinnati Bengals and the Los Angeles Rams both had interesting journeys to get to this moment, and there is no shortage of storylines entering Sunday’s showdown.

Andrew Whitworth has an opportunity to defeat his former team in the Super Bowl, Sean McVay is facing off against one of his former assistants in Zac Taylor, Joe Burrow led the Bengals to a Super Bowl in just his second year in the league despite coming off of a season-ending knee injury, and Matthew Stafford could finally silence his critics by winning it all, among other headline-worthy developments.

While some people watch the Super Bowl for the commercials or the halftime show, fans of both teams are nervously waiting to see if their favorite franchise gets to add a Lombardi Trophy to their collection. With the anticipation building up, here are four Rams players to watch in Sunday’s Super Bowl matchup against the Bengals.

Super Bowl LVI: The official Touchdown Wire predictions

The writers of Touchdown Wire go on record with their predictions for Super Bowl LVI.

Super Bowl LVI is nearly upon us. Doug Farrar, Laurie Fitzpatrick and Mark Schofield have watched all the film humanly possible, the game has been broken down from every potential angle, and it is time to our experts to plant their flags.

Here are the official Touchdown Wire predictions for Super Bowl LVI. From key matchups, the battle on the ground, how each team can win, who will win, and more.

 

Cooper Kupp received 1 vote for MVP, which is more than Russell Wilson has in his career

Cooper Kupp has now received more votes for MVP (1) than Russell Wilson (0) in his career 😅

Cooper Kupp had a great night at the NFL Honors show, winning 2021 AP Offensive Player of the Year and DraftKings Daily Fantasy Player of the Year. It’s no surprise that he didn’t win MVP, an award that went to Aaron Rodgers, but he did receive one of the 50 votes.

That’s an accomplishment in its own right, considering how rare it is for a wide receiver to get even one vote for MVP. He finished third in the voting behind Rodgers and Tom Brady – two future Hall of Famers.

What’s crazy is that he now has more MVP votes than Russell Wilson has in his 10-year career. It’s hard to believe that Wilson has never received a vote for MVP despite making the Pro Bowl nine times in 10 seasons and finishing top-four in Offensive Player of the Year voting four times, but Wilson still has never received an MVP vote.

What put Kupp on the MVP radar were his incredible numbers. He caught 145 passes for 1,947 yards and 16 touchdowns in the regular season, leading the NFL in all three categories. It was one of the best seasons ever by a wide receiver, and he was more than deserving of the Offensive Player of the Year award.

Considering Kupp couldn’t win MVP with those numbers, it’s unlikely a wide receiver ever will. But hey, at least he can say he received one vote.

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Jalen Ramsey, Robert Woods celebrate Cooper Kupp winning Offensive Player of the Year

Here’s how Jalen Ramsey and Robert Woods celebrated Cooper Kupp winning Offensive Player of the Year

Cooper Kupp became just the third different receiver in NFL history to win Offensive Player of the Year when he took home the award on Thursday night, joining Jerry Rice (who did it twice) and Michael Thomas as the only wideouts to win it.

It was a well-deserved honor for the league’s leading receiver, dominating from Week 1 all the way through the playoffs. He beat out Jonathan Taylor, Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers for the award, which goes to show how great Kupp was all year.

His teammates, including Robert Woods and Jalen Ramsey, congratulated him on social media and celebrated the award after a historic season by the Rams wideout.

Rams Cooper Kupp honored as AP Offensive Player of the Year

Cooper Kupp beat out two great QBs for the AP Offensive Player of the Year award

He was up against Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers. Nothing has stopped Cooper Kupp of the Los Angeles Rams this NFL season and neither did the great quarterbacks.

The Rams’ wide receiver extraordinaire was named AP Offensive Player of the Year at NFL Honors on Thursday in Los Angeles.

Kupp won the receiving Triple Crown. He had 1,947 receiving yards, 145 receptions, and 16 touchdowns.

No matter how teams tried to cover him, the wideout from Eastern Washington got open and gained yards after the catch.

Pretty good for a third-round pick from an FCS school.

Now he sets his sights on a ring Sunday as the Rams face the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday at SoFi Stadium.

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Cooper Kupp wins 2021 AP Offensive Player of the Year

Cooper Kupp has won AP Offensive Player of the Year, capping off a historic 2021 season by the Rams WR 🏆

One of the greatest seasons ever by a wide receiver ends with a well-deserved award for Cooper Kupp. At the NFL Honors show Thursday night, Kupp won 2021 AP Offensive Player of the Year.

He won the receiving triple crown this year, leading the NFL in receptions (145), yards (1,947) and touchdown catches (16), putting together a historic campaign for the Rams. He set franchise records for catches and receiving yards, blowing past the previous records held by Isaac Bruce (119 catches, 1,781 yards).

Kupp is the second wide receiver to win Offensive Player of the Year in the last three years, joining Michael Thomas, who won it in 2019. This is only the fourth time a wide receiver has won Offensive Player of the Year. Jerry Rice won it twice in 1987 and 1993, and Thomas took home the award two years ago.

Kupp edged out Colts running back Jonathan Taylor, who was far and away the best running back in football. Taylor had 10 games with at least 100 yards, leading the NFL with 332 carries, 1,811 rushing yards and 18 touchdowns on the ground. He added another 360 yards receiving, giving him 2,171 yards from scrimmage.

3 things the Rams have to do to win Super Bowl 56

How the Rams will win Super Bowl 56.

This is what the Los Angeles Rams had in mind when they mortgaged future draft picks for Jalen Ramsey, Von Miller and, of course, Matthew Stafford. The franchise is currently one win away from its second-ever Super Bowl title and first on the West Coast.

It’s an impressive rise for a team reduced to starting John Wolford in a playoff game a year earlier. The Rams opened as a 4.5-point favorite, per Tipico Sportsbook, for a a Super Bowl 56 showdown with the Cincinnati Bengals that will take place at their home field in Inglewood, CA.

Los Angeles’ all-in approach was prosperous, but it won’t matter if the only banner raised at SoFi Stadium is merely a conference title. The Rams have to derail a Bengals team that’s punched above its weight class to unseat the Chiefs and claim the AFC side of the biggest game of the season. Cincinnati won’t be swayed by a big moment or being an underdog on the road against a dynamite passing offense. LA coach Sean McVay is going to have to devise his best gameplan of the season to handle them.

Here’s where he should start.

How the Rams can beat the Bengals in Super Bowl LVI

If the Los Angeles Rams are to beat the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl LVI, they’ll have to do these three things.

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The Rams hired Sean McVay to be their head coach in 2017, and that’s worked out pretty well so far. McVay has a regular-season record of 55-26, and anytime you’re riding with a .679 winning percentage, that’s more than acceptable.

Now, McVay has the opportunity to do the one thing that separates good coaches from great — win a Super Bowl. This is McVay’s second chance in four seasons; his Rams fell short to Bill Belichick’s Patriots in Super Boal LIII, and McVay has admitted since that he was overwhelmed by the moment and the opponent.

“I think it was a blessing to be in that game,” he said this week, reflecting on what has changed. “Certainly, you don’t forget about it. You want to be able to do better. But I don’t think you press when you do get another opportunity to be in this moment and this stage again. I think you look at it as a blessing, you take some of those learning lessons, you apply them, and let’s go cut it loose and play to the best of our ability, and I’ll coach to the best of my ability with our coaches, as well.”

Now, McVay is the veteran head coach in this game. He’s got Matthew Stafford instead of Jared Goff. He’s got Super Cooper Kupp and Odell Beckham Jr. He’s got Aaron Donald, Destroyer of Worlds, and he’s got Jalen Ramsey. He’s also got the fact that Bengals head coach Zac Taylor was on McVay’s staff in 2017 and 2018 as the Rams’ assistant receivers coach and quarterbacks coach.

The moment is primed for Sean McVay to get that Lombardi Trophy. Here are three things the Rams will have to do for that to happen.