Wide receivers have been the soup du jour ahead of the NFL trade deadline, with DeAndre Hopkins the latest to change addresses on Wednesday.
Hopkins, who was dealt to defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City by Tennessee, followed Davante Adams heading from Las Vegas to the New York Jets and Amari Cooper going from Cleveland to Buffalo.
Could Cooper Kupp make it a quartet of Pro Bowl wide receivers on the move before the Nov. 5 deadline?
The Los Angeles Rams’ star is expected to return Thursday night from an ankle injury that has sidelined him since Week 2. That is, if he’s still on the roster when the Rams take on the Minnesota Vikings.
Kupp acknowledged that he’s “aware” of rumors that he could be dealt as the Rams seek to add draft capital. With three veteran wide receivers having already been dealt, an odds-on favorite has emerged at one sportsbook to land Kupp if he’s dealt.
COOPER KUPP NEXT TEAM ODDS*
Steelers (4/5) (-125)
Chargers (4/1)
Buccaneers (6/1)
Lions (7/1)
Falcons (16/1)
Commanders (18/1)
Bills (20/1)
Saints (20/1)
Chiefs (25/1)
Ravens (28/1)
Cowboys (33/1)
Dolphins (33/1)
49ers (33/1)
Cardinals (40/1)
Broncos (40/1)
Texans (40/1)
Colts (40/1)
Giants (40/1)
Bears (50/1)
Packers (50/1)
Jaguars (50/1)
Jets (50/1)
Seahawks (50/1)
Titans (50/1)
Panthers (75/1)
Bengals (75/1)
Browns (75/1)
Vikings (75/1)
Patriots (75/1)
Eagles (75/1)
*Odds from SportsBetting.ag provided for entertainment purposes only.
The Steelers improved to 5-2 while turning to veteran quarterback Russell Wilson in Week 7. George Pickens leads the team with 31 catches for 474 yards, but Calvin Austin III is the team’s next-leading wideout with only 11 receptions for 203 yards, followed by former Ram Van Jefferson’s 10 catches for 77 yards. All three have a lone touchdown through seven games.
The Chargers (3-3) have one of the league’s most inexperienced receiving corps after the offseason departures of Keenan Allen and Mike Williams. Rookie Ladd McConkey leads the team with 24 catches for 265 yards and a pair of touchdowns, with Joshua Palmer (13 catches) and Quentin Johnston (14) the only other wideouts with double-digit catches.
Another potential landing spot is Tampa Bay (4-3), where the Buccaneers lost Mike Evans (hamstring) for at least several games and Chris Godwin (ankle) potentially for the season in Monday night’s loss to Baltimore. That leaves journeyman Sterling Shepard and his eight catches as the team’s leading healthy wideout.
The fourth-shortest odds belong to Detroit (5-1), with the Lions bracing to be without Jameson Williams due to a two-game suspension. Williams’ 17 catches are second on the team only to Amon St. Brown’s 39, with the third-leading wideout being Kalif Raymond with 11 receptions.
KUPP CONCERNS
Kupp, 31, has been injury prone over the last three seasons since his mammoth 2021 campaign in which he won the receiver Triple Crown by leading the NFL with 145 catches for 1,947 yards and 16 touchdowns. He also was Super Bowl MVP that season when the Rams beat the Cincinnati Bengals.
The $14 million in guaranteed money remaining on his contract — and how much the Rams are willing to eat of it — is another hurdle that must be cleared in any trade discussions.
“I’m aware of it, but at the end of the day, I mean, I’m going to be where my feet are,” Kupp told reporters on Tuesday. “That’s all I know. I have a job to do here. And I take a lot of pride in giving everything I can for the guys in this building and being able to step on the field knowing that I prepared the best that I can.
“And for seven and a half years, I’ve been an L.A. Ram and I’ve taken that approach every single day. And whatever happens outside of that, I’ve got to control what I can control. And right now that means being the best L.A. Ram that I can be.”
