A tenure that reached the pinnacle of football came to an unceremonious end on Wednesday as the Rams released wide receiver and Super Bowl LVI MVP Cooper Kupp.
Kupp addressed the release in a post on X (formerly Twitter), writing, “We talked often about the Rams being back in LA and how we would grow to be something special here. And there was frustration early on around getting the buy in from the people of LA. But we knew at the end of the day, it’s about providing moments. Shared experiences. The things that parents and their children will talk about and remember forever. That is what makes the ending of these last eight years so difficult. It’s the ending of something we have enjoyed building with you.”
In February, Kupp announced that the team was actively trying to trade him after he spent the first eight years of his career with the Rams. But after scouring the market, the Rams could not find a trade partner and ultimately released the receiver on the first day of the new NFL calendar, allowing him to sign with a team of his choice.
Kupp was selected by the Rams in the third round of the 2017 draft, Sean McVay’s first with the team after being hired as head coach earlier that offseason. He gained 869 yards and five touchdowns as a rookie, then was limited to eight games due to injury in 2018, missing out on the Rams’ trip to Super Bowl LIII.
In 2019, Kupp broke out. He had his first 1,000-yard season while recording 94 catches and 10 touchdowns. But he really took off after the Rams traded for quarterback Matthew Stafford ahead of the 2021 season. He became the first outright receiving Triple Crown winner since Sterling Sharpe in 1992, leading the NFL with 145 receptions, 1,947 yards and 16 touchdowns.
Kupp was named AP Offensive Player of the Year, then continued his dominant run into the playoffs. He caught a touchdown in all four of the Rams’ postseason games, including two in a 20-17 victory over the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC title game, then another two in the 23-20 win over the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl LVI.
That eight-catch, 92-yard performance – including the 1-yard, game-winning touchdown with 1:25 to play – earned Kupp MVP honors for the game at SoFi Stadium.
He seemed to pick up right where he left off in 2022, making 75 catches for 812 yards and six touchdowns in the first nine games of that season. But a high ankle sprain that required surgery kept him out of the final eight contests, and he never regained his pre-injury form.
A hamstring pull in training camp in 2023 kept Kupp out of the first four games of that campaign. Then an ankle sprain in Week 2 of this past season cost him another four games. After his return, trade speculation popped up that Kupp could be moved before the deadline.
McVay shut that down at the time. But after the season, Kupp expressed uncertainty about whether or not he would be back with the Rams in 2025, even while stating his desire to return.
But after meeting as a leadership group, the Rams decided to trade Kupp. The sides did not discuss any potential restructure of his contract, which called for Kupp to be paid $20 million this year, including a $7.5 million roster bonus that was due on Saturday. By designating Kupp a post-June 1 cut, the Rams save $15 million against the salary cap while accruing a $14.78 million dead cap number in 2025 and $7.48 million in 2026.
Kupp’s release marks the end of an era. As recently as two years ago, Rams general manager Les Snead referred to him as one of the team’s “weight-bearing walls” as the front office went about turning the roster over.
As much as the compliment was meant to signify Kupp’s importance on the field, it signified the influence he had in the Rams’ locker room, too. His willingness to do the dirty work as a receiver and block in the running game set the tone for the rest of the locker room. He took young players like Puka Nacua under his wing, teaching them the offense and also how to conduct themselves as pros. And he set that example himself, such as how he did not air out any grievances as his role in the offense shrank this past season.
“Coop had a big influence on my career,” wide receiver Tutu Atwell said Tuesday. “Just coming in and him taking me in and just him watching me grow as a player. He’s a fantastic player, great guy to learn from. When I was down, I could lean on him. It’s going to be tough for that leader just to walk out the room.”