Tag: Cooper Kupp

Aaron Donald, injured Los Angeles Rams need to get healthy in a hurry

Jared Goff, Aaron Donald, Cooper Kupp, and John Wolford are banged up right now.

The Rams are headed to the second round of the playoffs, but they might be facing some tough sledding in the games to come. As impressive as their performance against the Seahawks was, they didn’t quite make it out of the game unscathed. 

Right now, three of the Rams’ highest-paid starters are hurt. During the win against Seattle, Aaron Donald hurt his ribs and Cooper Kupp suffered a non-contact leg injury late in the game. Jared Goff was originally sitting on the bench behind John Wolford as he recovered from thumb surgery that happened two weeks ago, but Wolford was hurt with a concussion during the game.

This is creating quite the predicament for the Rams. The team and their doctors will figure out what’s going to happen to Wolford, Goff, Donald, and Kupp over the coming days. In the meantime, the Rams have to be sweating a bit with their current injury situation. The Rams defense is undoubtedly championship caliber and it would be unfortunate to have a string of bad luck to derail their postseason hopes.

In his early return from thumb surgery, Goff completed just nine of his 19 pass attempts for 155 yards and a touchdown. It’s going to be tough to sustain wins in the playoffs with that kind of production.

Next up, the Rams will be playing either the Packers, Buccaneers, or Washington Football Team (let’s be real, they’ll most likely be playing the Packers). Obviously, they would like to be at full strength for those games. If they can get healthy, or at least to a spot where these guys are on the field, the Rams have the talent to go deep into the playoffs. 

If Wolford and Goff both can’t go, then Blake Bortles will get some playing time in the postseason. Bortles did have a nice little stretch during the Jaguars’ run to the 2017 AFC Championship game, but that’s not something to rely on.

Report: Cooper Kupp’s knee injury isn’t serious, expected to be fine

The early report on Cooper Kupp’s knee injury is encouraging.

The Rams were decimated by injuries in Saturday’s win over the Seahawks, watching player after player leave the game. The first was John Wolford, who suffered a neck injury in the first quarter, while the last was Cooper Kupp, who suffered a non-contact knee injury just before the two-minute warning in the fourth quarter.

It was a scary sight for Rams fans, watching Kupp leave the field holding his knee, but the early reports are encouraging. According to Mike Garafolo of NFL Network, Kupp’s injury is a knee contusion and he’s expected to be fine moving forward.

That’s excellent news as the Rams gear up to play next weekend in the divisional round.

Kupp caught four passes for 78 yards in the win, none bigger than a 44-yard reception over Jamal Adams on a deep shot from Jared Goff. He’s a big part of the Rams’ offense, and having him available next weekend will be crucial.

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Watch: Cooper Kupp makes acrobatic catch over Jamal Adams

Cooper Kupp saved Jared Goff from an interception with this spectacular catch.

Jared Goff replaced John Wolford at quarterback in the first quarter of Saturday’s playoff game, and he didn’t exactly get off to a strong start. His first four pass attempts fell incomplete, but his fifth was a 44-yard gain to Cooper Kupp.

It was Kupp who did all of the work on that play, too. It was terribly underthrown by Goff, but Kupp came back to the ball and made a spectacular catch over Jamal Adams to put the Rams in field goal range.

Take a look at the grab, which was the best play of the game so far, and helped set up a 39-yard field goal by Matt Gay.

Los Angeles Rams activate WR Cooper Kupp from COVID-19 list

Cooper Kupp appears to be on way back for the Rams’ Wild-Card game

The Los Angeles Rams are on track to get one of their best receivers back. Now, if they only know who will be throwing passes to him.

Cooper Kupp was activated from the reserve/COVID-19 list on Wednesday. He missed the final game of the season against Arizona.

Kupp had 92 catches for 974 yards.

Meanwhile, the Rams’ quarterback for their NFC Wild-Card game Saturday against the Seattle Seahawks is undecided.

Jared Goff had surgery after breaking and dislocating his right thumb in Week 16. John Wolford started against the Cardinals.

Sean McVay has not made the QB call but it looks like Kupp will be back, which is a huge boost.

 

Rams activate Cooper Kupp off reserve/COVID-19 list

Cooper Kupp is back with the Rams and eligible to play against the Seahawks on Saturday.

Cooper Kupp is officially back.

After the wide receiver missed Week 17 due to COVID-19, Kupp has been activated off the reserve list, the Rams announced Wednesday. Kupp is now eligible to play in the team’s playoff game against the Seahawks on Saturday, which is great news for L.A.

Sean McVay said Tuesday that Kupp was expected to come off the reserve/COVID-19 list this week as long as he continued to test negative and clear protocol. Michael Brockers remains on COVID-19 reserve, but he’s also expected to be activated later this week if he continues on his current path.

Kupp led the team in receptions (92) and receiving yards (974) this season, scoring three touchdowns. He’s been Jared Goff’s security blanket all year, as well as in past seasons.

He’ll rejoin Robert Woods, Josh Reynolds and Van Jefferson at wide receiver on Saturday against the Seahawks, giving the Rams a full cast of pass catchers for this pivotal game.

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Cooper Kupp and Michael Brockers expected back this week

The Rams are working their way back to full strength with Kupp and Brockers set to return.

The Rams were forced to play Sunday’s game against the Cardinals without two of their most important players, Cooper Kupp and Michael Brockers. Both players landed on the reserve/COVID-19 list last week and remain there as of Tuesday, forcing them to miss Week 17 against Arizona.

They remain away from the team to start this week of preparation for the Seahawks, but Sean McVay shared an encouraging update on their statuses for Wild Card Weekend. According to McVay, Kupp is expected to return to the team on Wednesday, while Brockers should be back later in the week as long as they continue to test negative.

The Rams will practice Wednesday and Thursday before traveling to Seattle on Friday for Saturday’s game. So if Brockers is going to practice this week, it’ll have to be on Thursday – which would be enough for the veteran defensive lineman.

Getting Kupp and Brockers back, as well as possibly Andrew Whitworth, would be a huge boost to the Rams’ chances of pulling off the upset on the road against the Seahawks.

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Two ways the Rams can replace Cooper Kupp on Sunday vs. Cardinals

The Rams won’t have Cooper Kupp on Sunday, but they have multiple ways to make up for his absence.

Cooper Kupp has been an impact player for the Rams since the first game he played in the NFL back in 2017. He’s as reliable as they come at wide receiver, catching seemingly everything thrown his way and proving to be a chain-mover on third down.

But in the biggest game of the season, the Rams will be without Kupp’s services after he reportedly tested positive for COVID-19. That’s a huge blow to the offense, especially with John Wolford making his first career start.

But fortunately, the Rams are deep at wide receiver and have the talent to at least somewhat fill the void left by No. 10 on offense. Here are two different ways they can do that, with both methods likely to be used throughout Sunday’s game against the Cardinals.

Rams will be without leading passer, rusher and receiver in Week 17

The Rams will be extremely short-handed against the Cardinals in the season finale.

When the Los Angeles Rams take the field on offense Sunday, there will be some important names missing from the backs of their jerseys. Jared Goff is out with a broken thumb. Darrell Henderson Jr. has a high ankle sprain, which landed him on IR this week. Cooper Kupp tested positive for COVID-19 and is out at least 10 days.

All three have played integral roles on offense this season, and none of them will be available in the Rams’ most important game of the season – potentially a must-win if the Bears upset the Packers in Week 17.

Goff is obviously the team’s leading passer, throwing for 3,952 yards and 20 touchdowns this season. Henderson leads the team in rushing and has started 11 games, gaining 624 yards and scoring five times on the ground; he also has 159 yards receiving with one touchdown reception. Kupp leads the team in targets (124), receptions (92) and receiving yards (974), averaging a team-high 64.9 yards per game.

When the Rams need a win most, they’ll be without their leading passer, rusher and receiver. And to make matters worse, they could also be missing Cam Akers, who is questionable to play with a high ankle sprain of his own.

With John Wolford set to take his first snap ever in the regular season, his supporting cast will be sorely lacking. Sure, Robert Woods is a great receiver, and both Tyler Higbee and Gerald Everett are talented tight ends. Malcolm Brown is no slouch at running back, either, and Van Jefferson has shown flashes of talent as a rookie.

But it’s hard to replace the likes of Goff, Kupp, Henderson and possibly Akers – especially given the circumstances with a playoff berth on the line.

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Report: Rams WR Cooper Kupp tested positive for COVID-19, will miss game vs. Cardinals

He will miss the team’s Week 17 game against the Cardinals and could miss the wild-card round of the playoffs if the Rams make it.

The Los Angeles Rams will have to deal with another sure absence from their offensive starting lineup when they take on the Arizona Cardinals in Week 17. Already down quarterback Jared Goff, running back Darrell Henderson and perhaps running back Cam Akers, they know they will also be without leading receiver Cooper Kupp.

Kupp was placed on the COVID-19 reserve on Tuesday. If he had been placed on the list for close contact with someone who tested positive, there was the possibility he could be reinstated to the roster on Sunday morning.

However, that is not the case. According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, Kupp has tested positive for COVID-19.

He will not be able to play against the Cardinals and, if the Rams qualify for the postseason, his status for the wild-card round of the playoffs is also up in the air.

Kupp leads the Rams with 92 receptions and 974 receiving yards. He has three touchdown catches.

He caught eight passes for 73 yards when the two teams met in Week 13, a 38-28 Rams win.

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Report: Cooper Kupp out vs. Cardinals after testing positive for COVID-19

Cooper Kupp was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list Tuesday and will miss Sunday’s season finale.

In addition to missing Jared Goff and Darrell Henderson, the Rams will also be without Cooper Kupp in their season finale against the Cardinals. According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, Kupp tested positive for COVID-19 and will be unavailable for Sunday’s game.

Kupp was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list Tuesday, but it wasn’t revealed whether he tested positive or was deemed a close contact to someone who has. Because he did test positive, he’ll be out at least 10 days.

This is obviously big news for the Rams, who will start John Wolford at quarterback in the final game of the season. They need a win over the Cardinals or a loss by the Bears in order to make the playoffs after losing their last two games.

In Kupp’s place, expect Van Jefferson to get more playing time alongside Robert Woods and Josh Reynolds. The tight ends should also be more involved, especially if L.A. leans on the running game with Malcolm Brown.

Kupp will finish the season with 974 yards and three touchdowns, catching 92 of his 124 targets in 15 games played.