The Los Angeles Rams bowed out of the playoffs against the Philadelphia Eagles this season. Along with Matthew Stafford continuing to age, it seems that some sort of retooling may be in the future. The Rams agree, as they have said they are actively looking to pull off a Cooper Kupp trade this offseason.
Ever since he was drafted, Kupp has been somewhat of a mystery. Sean McVay knew that the Eastern Washington receiver had the route-running ability to carve out a role in the NFL. While having Jared Goff throwing to him, Kupp looked like a solid slot receiver, but when Matt Stafford came to town, Kupp put together one of the best receiving seasons in NFL history.
Since his triple crown in 2021, Kupp has dealt with injuries that have kept him off of the field. The issue and mystery is that when on the field, Kupp has not played nearly as well as he did in 2021. While the emergence of Nacua and Kyren Williams can be cited as reasons, as a whole, it feels like Kupp is a new player for the worse. Add to the fact that Kupp is on an $80 million contract with $75 million of that guaranteed, and it makes sense why the Rams should probably move on from him during NFL Free Agency.
With that being said, here are three possible Cooper Kupp trade destinations.
3 Possible Cooper Kupp Trade Destinations
Washington Commanders
In his first season as a starter in the NFL, Jayden Daniels was able to lead the Washington Commanders to the NFC Championship. As has been somewhat of a theme throughout recent history, quarterbacks oftentimes struggle in their second season. Look at C.J. Stroud. One of the big pieces to Washington and Daniels’ success was having a reliable target in Zach Ertz. As Ertz continues to age, it is uncertain what his future holds.
That’s where a Cooper Kupp trade comes in. Even with injuries, one thing certain is that Kupp still has the ability to find soft spots in the defense. Washington has a ton of money to spend in the offseason and gearing up for a Super Bowl run makes sense to add some seasoned veterans. I don’t know that this is a situation where Washington trades for a veteran and then extends him, but in a situation where they are obviously in win-now mode, bringing in someone who has proved his worth seems like a good idea.
Houston Texans
The Houston Texans are in a weird spot because, at this time last year, it looked like they were geared up (at least offensively) to win a Super Bowl. Now, we are looking at the Texans with a little uncertainty, as Stefon Diggs’ free agency status is up in the air and Tank Dell’s future is certainly uncertain with another bad knee injury. Trying to retool the wide receiver room with Kupp makes sense, as giving the Texans a secondary option to keep Nico Collins featured as the number one guy is something that has worked in Kupp’s past with Nacua.
Another interesting connection here is that the Houston Texans just hired the Rams’ passing game coordinator, Nick Caley. Caley spent the last two seasons with Kupp. While Kupp was dealing with injuries and inconsistent play, there is still some familiarity with each other. The Rams finished 11th in 2023 and 10th in 2024 in regards to passing, so there is some merit to having these two together helping to improve upon a disappointing passing attack in Houston last season.
Pittsburgh Steelers
There is going to be a lot of uncertainty at the quarterback position in Pittsburgh, with Russell Wilson and Justin Fields both set to hit free agency. Still, no matter who starts under center next season for the Steelers, the receiving room needs to be bolstered. I love George Pickens, but we have yet to see him really develop those skills as we are still waiting for him to become that consistent elite receiver. Outside of Pickens though, there is no other strong receiving threat. Adding a veteran like Kupp should theoretically give the Steelers some consistency as they gear up for another playoff push.
While it is probably impossible to pull off a trade of this magnitude, I think that it logically makes sense for the Rams to try and move Kupp and Stafford together. If this were the case, the only team that really makes sense for this to happen is the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Stafford aside, the Steelers’ defense is too good to not continue to shoot for the Super Bowl. In terms of receivers available, a Cooper Kupp trade is probably the number-one option.
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