Somehow, Matthew Stafford and the Los Angeles Rams are leading one of the most prolific passing offenses in football despite being without their best receiver. Record-breaking wideout Puka Nacua has been critical to their success, but imagine having Nacua and Cooper Kupp on the field at the same time.
That dream could soon become reality after the Rams officially opened up the 21-day practice window for Kupp on Wednesday. This gives the Super Bowl LVI MVP up to three weeks to get back up to speed before the Rams have to either activate him to the roster or leave him on injured reserve for the rest of the season.
But there are no indications that Kupp is set to miss more time after being sidelined for the first four games of the Rams’ season while dealing with a hamstring injury. Instead, the Rams are expecting to get their All-Pro receiver back in the lineup for Week 5’s matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles.
However, Kupp may not receive the typical workload we’ve come to expect from the Pro Bowl wideout who led the NFL in receptions and receiving yards in 2021. Hamstrings are tricky, and as Kupp knows all too well, they also have a tendency to get re-injured.
Having Nacua as another weapon should help the Rams manage Kupp’s snap count early on, allowing him to ease back into action after initially suffering the injury back in August. At 2-2, the Rams are off to a better start than most expected, and with the return of Kupp, they’ll look to maintain that momentum the rest of the way.
Related: See where Matthew Stafford ranks among QBs this season