Cooper Kupp

Cooper Douglas Kupp (born June 15, 1993) is an American football wide receiver for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Eastern Washington and received All-America honors. Kupp was drafted by the Rams in the third round of the 2017 NFL Draft.

Kupp was born in Yakima, Washington. Kupp attended and graduated from Davis High School in Yakima in 2012 where he was a two-sport athlete in football and basketball for the Pirates athletic teams. A two-way All-State selection, he earned first team 4A All-State honors as a defensive back and honorable mention accolades as a wide receiver from the Associated Press, as selected by sportswriters and broadcasters. Kupp was also named by the Seattle Times as a "White Chip" selection, as one of the top 100 prospects in the state of Washington.

Kupp was a unanimous first-team All-Columbia Basin Big Nine League wide receiver and defensive back at Davis. He finished his senior season with 60 receptions for 1,059 yards (17.7 per catch) and 18 touchdowns, and scored 22 total touchdowns to set a school record. He also had 11 rushes for 122 yards and two touchdowns as he helped Davis come one game away from a berth in the Washington State 4A Playoffs.

Kupp finished his prep career with 110 catches for 2,100 yards. He was also a three-year letter winner in basketball. He led Davis to a 23–2 record and won the State 4A Tournament championship during his senior year for the Pirates.

2013 season

Kupp attended Eastern Washington University, where he signed to play for coach Beau Baldwin's Eastern Washington Eagles football team in 2012 and redshirted that year. Kupp would eventually be named Eastern's Offensive Scout Team Player of the Year. In 2013, Kupp entered his redshirt freshman year as a starter at wide receiver. Kupp finished the season having set numerous single-season school and national receiving records at the Football Championship Subdivision Level. Kupp has set national freshman records for receiving yards (1,691), total touchdown catches (21), consecutive games with a touchdown catch (14), and receptions (93).

On November 26, 2013, Kupp was named to the All-Big Sky Conference First Team as a unanimous selection and was also the recipient of the conference's first-ever Freshman of the Year Award.

On December 16, 2013, Kupp was named the recipient of the 2013 Jerry Rice Award, given to the top freshman player in the FCS. Kupp is the first Eastern Washington player and first player from the Big Sky Conference to receive the award.

Kupp was named a consensus first-team All-American, having been honored by the four major selectors at the FCS level, consisting of the American Football Coaches Association, the Associated Press, The Sports Network and the Walter Camp Football Foundation. Kupp was the first freshman wide receiver to be named as a first-team All-American since Randy Moss in 1996.

On January 9, 2014, Kupp was honored by the College Football Performance Awards with the 2013 FCS Wide Receiver Award. Kupp is the second straight Eagles wide receiver to win the award, following Brandon Kaufman, who won the 2012 award.

2014 season

Kupp finished his sophomore season with 104 catches for 1,431 yards and 16 touchdowns in 13 games. He was named a First-Team All-American by the AFCA, AP, and TSN for the second consecutive season. He was also named to the first team All-Big Sky Conference for the second straight year as a wide receiver while also earning third team honors as punt returner. Kupp finished 18th in the 2014 Walter Payton Award voting.

2015 season

In the 2015 season, Kupp finished the season with 114 catches for 1,642 yards and 19 touchdown in 11 games. Kupp broke the Big Sky single-season record for catches with 114, a total that ranks ninth most all-time in FCS single-season history. Kupp was named a first team All-Big Sky Conference wide receiver for the third-straight year and was also named the league's Offensive Most Valuable Player. He was just the second wide receiver to be named Big Sky Offensive MVP in the last 42 years. In addition, Kupp won the Walter Payton Award, becoming the third Eastern Washington player to win the award and only the second wide receiver to win, after Brian Finneran of Villanova in 1997.

2016 season

On November 30, 2015, Kupp announced that he would return for his senior season after speculation that he was considering entering the 2016 NFL Draft. He was poised to break nearly every major FCS career receiving record mark during his final collegiate season. In the 2016 season, he finished with 117 receptions for 1,700 yards and 17 touchdowns. At the end of Kupp's college career, his 428 career receptions and 6,464 total receiving yards are both the most in FCS history, passing marks previously held by Terrell Hudgins, who had 395 receptions and 5,250 receiving yards playing for Elon University from 2006–2009. Kupp's 73 receiving touchdowns also rank first in FCS history, passing the 58 touchdowns that New Hampshire's David Ball caught from 2003–2006.

College statistics

All statistics from goeags.com.

College awards and honors

• College football all-division career leader in receiving yards (6,464)
• NCAA FCS career leader in receiving touchdowns (73) and receptions (428)
• Walter Payton Award (2015)
• STATS FCS Offensive Player of the Year (2015)
• Jerry Rice Award (2013)
• 2x Big Sky Conference Offensive Player of the Year (2015–16)
• Big Sky Conference Freshman of the Year (2013)
• 2x College Football Performance Awards FCS Wide Receiver Award (2013, 2015)
• 4x First-team FCS All-American (AFCA, AP, STATS) (2013–16)
• 3x First-team FCS All-American (WCFF) (2013, 15–16)
• 2x First-team Division I Academic All-American (CoSIDA) (2015–16)
• Second-team Division I Academic All-American (CoSIDA) (2014)
• 4x First-team All-Big Sky Conference Wide Receiver (2013–16)
• Second-team All-Big Sky Conference Punt Returner (2016)
• Third-team All-Big Sky Conference Punt Returner (2014)

Kupp attended the 2017 Senior Bowl and made two receptions for 14 receiving yards for the North, who lost 16–15 to the South. Kupp's performance at the Senior Bowl elevated his draft stock. NFL analyst Bucky Brooks stated Kupp was the top performer at the Senior Bowl. Kupp attended the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis and completed all the combine drills except for the bench press.

On March 28, 2017, he opted to participate at Eastern Washington's pro day along with Jordan West, Shaq Hill, Samson Ebukam, Kendrick Bourne, and Miquiyah Zamora. He attempted all of the combine drills, but opted to skip the bench press and broad jump. Kupp shortened his time in the short shuttle to 6.53s and performed positional drills for scouts and team representatives. At the conclusion of the pre-draft process, Kupp was projected to be a second or third round pick by NFL draft experts and scouts. He was ranked the eighth best wide receiver in the draft by NFLDraftScout.com. Steve Smith Sr. Ranked Cooper Kupp as the best wide receiver in the draft class.

The Los Angeles Rams selected Kupp in the third round (69th overall) of the 2017 NFL Draft. Kupp was the seventh wide receiver drafted in 2017 and became the second highest pick in Eastern Washington's school history, only behind Michael Roos who was taken by the Tennessee Titans in the 2005 NFL Draft (second round, 41st overall). He was reunited with Eastern Washington teammate Samson Ebukam after the Rams selected him in the fourth round (125th overall).

2017 season

On June 9, 2017, the Los Angeles Rams signed Kupp to a four-year, $3.83 million contract that includes a signing bonus of $954,760.

Kupp competed with Tavon Austin, Robert Woods, Mike Thomas, Bradley Marquez, Pharoh Cooper, and Josh Reynolds throughout training camp for a starting wide receiver role left vacant after Kenny Britt departed in free agency. Head coach Sean McVay named Kupp the fourth wide receiver on the depth chart behind Sammy Watkins, Robert Woods, and Tavon Austin.

Kupp made his NFL debut in the Rams' season-opener against the Indianapolis Colts and recorded four receptions for 76 yards, including an 18-yard touchdown pass from Jared Goff, marking the first of his career during the Rams' 46–9 victory. In Week 4, Kupp made five catches for 60 receiving yards and a touchdown in the Rams' 35–30 win over the Dallas Cowboys. During a Week 7 matchup in London against the Arizona Cardinals, he caught four passes for 51 yards and caught an 18-yard touchdown in the Rams' 33–0 victory. Through the first seven games, Kupp led the Rams in red-zone targets with 11 and developed as Jared Goff's top receiver in the red-zone and third downs. He was fourth in the entire NFL in red zone targets behind leaders Davante Adams, Larry Fitzgerald, and Dez Bryant who were tied with 20 red zone targets each. In Week 9, Kupp made his first career NFL start, catching three passes for 54 yards in the Rams' 51–17 victory over the New York Giants. At home for Week 10, Kupp made a then season-high six receptions for 47 receiving yards in a 33–7 victory over the Houston Texans. During Week 12 against the New Orleans Saints, Kupp posted his first career game with over 100 receiving yards, where he finished with 116 as the Rams won 26–20. In Week 14, against the Philadelphia Eagles, he finished with five receptions for 118 yards and a touchdown. By December, Kupp was a full time starter at wide receiver and ended his rookie season in 2017 with 62 receptions for 869 yards and five touchdowns.

The Rams finished first in the NFC West with an 11–5 record. On January 6, 2018, Kupp appeared in his first career playoff game and made eight receptions for 69 yards and a touchdown as the Rams lost by a score of 26–13 to the Atlanta Falcons in an NFC Wild Card Game at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

Following the season, Kupp was also named to the 2017 All-Rookie Team by the Pro Football Writers Association.

2018 season

McVay named Kupp a starting wide receiver in 2018 along with Robert Woods and offseason acquisition Brandin Cooks. In Week 4, Kupp caught nine passes for 162 receiving yards and two touchdowns (all single-game highs), including a career-best 70-yard scoring reception during a 38–31 win against the Minnesota Vikings. A week later, Kupp sustained a knee injury against the Denver Broncos and was carted off the field. Though he returned to the field in the third quarter of the Rams' 23–20 victory, Kupp was pulled out of the lineup and missed the next two games. Kupp returned to action in Week 9 vs. New Orleans Saints, catching five passes for 89 yards, including a 41-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter of the Rams' 45–35 loss, their first of the season. During the fourth quarter of the Rams' 36–31 victory over the Seattle Seahawks in Week 10, Kupp went down with a non-contact injury. An MRI the following day confirmed that Kupp tore his ACL, prematurely ending his season. He finished the season with 40 receptions for 566 yards and six touchdowns through eight games. Without Kupp, the Rams reached Super Bowl LIII where they lost 13–3 to the New England Patriots.

2019 season

Kupp returned from his injury in time for the Rams' season opener against the Carolina Panthers. He recorded seven receptions for 46 yards in the 30–27 victory. During Week 2 against the New Orleans Saints, he caught five passes for 120 yards as the Rams won 27–9. In the next game against the Cleveland Browns, Kupp caught 11 passes for 102 yards and two touchdowns in the 20–13 road victory. During Week 4 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Kupp caught nine passes for 121 yards and a touchdown in the 55–40 loss. Kupp continued this momentum in Week 5 on the road against the Seattle Seahawks, catching nine passes for 117 yards and a touchdown in a narrow road 30–29 loss. During a 24–10 Week 8 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals, Kupp caught seven receptions for 220 yards and a touchdown, marking the first time in his NFL career where he had over 200 receiving yards in a single game. After a Week 9 bye, he resumed play in Week 10, when he was held to four targets and no catches against the Pittsburgh Steelers on the road in a 12–17 loss. The last time he failed to record a reception in an NFL game was during Week 6 of the 2018 season. Overall, Kupp finished the 2019 season with 94 receptions for 1,161 receiving yards and ten receiving touchdowns.

2020 season

After wearing number 18 for his first three seasons in the NFL, Kupp switched jersey numbers to number 10, his collegiate number at Eastern Washington, on May 11, 2020. On September 12, 2020, Kupp signed a three-year, $48 million contract extension with the Rams, including $35.1 million guaranteed. During Week 3 against the Buffalo Bills, Kupp finished with 107 receiving yards and a touchdown as the Rams lost 32–35. In Week 4 against the New York Giants, Kupp caught a 55-yard touchdown pass late in the fourth quarter during the 17–9 win.In Week 8 against the Miami Dolphins, he had 11 receptions for 110 receiving yards in the 28–17 loss. In Week 11 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday Night Football, Kupp recorded 11 catches for 145 yards during the 27–24 win. He was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list by the Rams on December 29, 2020, and activated on January 6, 2021.

2021 season

During Week 2 against the Indianapolis Colts, Kupp finished with 163 receiving yards and 2 touchdowns as the Rams won 27–24.

NFL statistics

Kupp is the son of former NFL quarterback Craig Kupp, a fifth-round draft pick by the New York Giants in 1990 out of Pacific Lutheran University who played for the Phoenix Cardinals and the Dallas Cowboys in 1991. His younger brother, Ketner Kupp, also played at Eastern Washington and was signed by the Los Angeles Rams as a free agent in 2019, participating in training camp and in preseason games, but was released during the final roster cutdown.

His grandfather, Jake Kupp, was an offensive lineman for the University of Washington and was drafted in the ninth round of the 1964 NFL Draft by the Dallas Cowboys. He played from 1964–75 as a guard with Dallas, the Washington Redskins, Atlanta Falcons, and the New Orleans Saints. Named to the NFL All-Rookie team, he later was a five-time captain for the Saints. He was named to the franchise's 25-year All-Time Team and was inducted into its Hall of Fame in 1991.

Kupp developed a close friendship with Rams' quarterback Jared Goff while living with him for a few weeks after the draft. They practiced on their own time together, watched film, studied defensive schemes, and learned the playbook.

Kupp is a devout Christian. While attending Eastern Washington University, Kupp met his girlfriend and future wife, Anna Croskrey. The couple married in June 2015. They had their first child, a son, Cooper Jameson Kupp, on July 3, 2018.