If the Los Angeles Rams are going to surprise people and compete for a playoff spot in 2023 then they will need their stars like Matthew Stafford, Aaron Donald and Cooper Kupp to be healthy and productive.
Unfortunately though, the season hasn’t even started and Kupp hasn’t been able to stay on the field as he has been dealing with a hamstring injury that kept him out a majority of camp.
Things seemed to be trending in the right direction when Kupp returned to the practice field ahead of the Rams’ preseason finale against the Denver Broncos. That was short-lived though as Sean McVay recently announced that Kupp suffered a setback and will be considered day-to-day leading up to the regular season opener against the Seattle Seahawks on Sept. 10.
With just one week until kickoff, Kupp is going to see a specialist to get his hamstring looked at to understand the root of the injury, via Ian Rapoport of NFL Network:
Cooper Kupp is getting an extra look at his hamstring a weekend before the NFL season kicks off.
The star Rams wide receiver is in Minnesota today visiting with a body specialist to further understand the root of his injury, NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported, per sources.
With not much time until the team’s first game, it seems likely that Kupp will not be on the field to start the season. While it’s hard to imagine the Rams winning without him, it’s also important to be cautious and make sure Kupp is 100% healthy before returning to avoid another setback and him missing significant time in 2023.
Kupp has had the highest target share in the league the past two seasons so it’s no secret that he carries a big workload for L.A. whenever he is on the field.
If Kupp is unable to go in Week 1 then other receivers like Van Jefferson, Ben Skowronek, Tutu Atwell and rookie Puka Nacua will need to step up in his absence. Stafford has been working to build a connection with those guys this offseason although it’s obviously fair to say that none of them have anything close to what Kupp does with the Rams’ starting quarterback.
Regardless though, the Rams are likely preparing to be without Kupp in a big divisional matchup against a tough Seattle team on the road to begin the season, which isn’t ideal coming off a poor showing in the preseason.
