In a world where breaking news can come from anywhere, I always find it refreshing when it comes directly from the primary source.
But with that being said, I did not expect Cooper Kupp to break the news that the Los Angeles Rams were putting him on the trade block. Kupp made the announcement on Twitter/X:
I was informed that the team will be seeking a trade immediately and will be working with me and my family to find the right place to continue competing for championships. I don’t agree with the decision and always believed it was going to begin and end in LA.
Still, if there’s one thing that I have learned over the years: there are so many things that are out of your control, but it is how you respond to these things that you will look back on and remember.
I have taken so much pride in playing alongside my teammates for the LA community, so thank you for embracing my family and making this such a special place for us.
2024 began with one of the best training camps of my career. Preparations start now for 2025. Highly motivated, as healthy as ever, and looking forward to playing elite football for years to come. Love you guys..
But coming for it all.
I imagine that had to be tough to write for Cooper Kupp, who has accomplished so much with Los Angeles since the team drafted him in the third round (69th overall) in the 2017 NFL Draft. Nice pick, Rams.
Cooper Kupp is on the trade block, but I do not see a Bears fit
Cooper Kupp has had a whale of a career with the Los Angeles Rams. The Super Bowl LVI MVP was the NFL’s Offensive Player of the Year in 2021, as voted by the Associated Press and the Pro Football Writers of America. That season, Kupp also earned first-team All-Pro honors and a Pro Bowl nod after compiling a league-leading 145 catches, 1,947 receiving yards, and 16 touchdowns. There are few route-runners as crisp as Kupp, who teams that ability with an affinity of catching everything his way.
Unfortunately, injuries have kept Cooper Kupp from reaching his potential. There have only been two seasons (2019, 2021) in which Kupp has played in 100 percent of his team’s regular season games. That he has not done so since 2021 is likely to be viewed as a yellow flag by any team that wishes to acquire him this offseason. But make no mistake, there will be a market for Kupp. A trade might not yield the largest return, but I don’t doubt that one of the NFL’s other 31 teams will want to roll the dice on someone with his skills.
With that being said, I do not expect the Chicago Bears to be one of those teams kicking the tires on Cooper Kupp. DJ Moore is already locked into a long-term deal. Rome Odunze is coming off a solid, but unspectacular rookie season. Keenan Allen is set to become a free agent when the new league year opens its doors in March, but has left the door open for a return to Chicago. This isn’t to say that I wouldn’t welcome Kupp on the Bears. However, I do not think it would be a good fit. And even if it was, it would be a tough one to make.
And yet, some team is going to make room for Cooper Kupp on its roster. Hopefully, it will not be a team that is one of the Bears’ rivals in the NFC North.