With three games in the books, the Los Angeles Rams are off to a hot 3-0 start. While the defense has improved drastically, the offense is not quite firing like many expected. However, there is one area on offense that the Rams are happy to see back in action.
Cooper Kupp has been outstanding in his first three games back after suffering a torn ACL in the middle of last season. He has more than picked up where he left off last year, once again leading the way for the Rams receiving corps.
Kupp recorded his first two touchdowns of the season in Sunday night’s win over the Cleveland Browns, finishing with a career-high 11 receptions for 102 yards.
He has been the go-to target for quarterback Jared Goff, and Kupp feels like the trust in their relationship is what has led to success, via Gary Klein and Sam Farmer of the L.A. Times:
“It’s a lot of Jared trusting me to be in the right place at the right time,” said Kupp, who scored on plays of 11 yards in the third quarter and six yards in the fourth.
Kupp’s career night against the Browns brings his season statistics to 23 receptions for 268 yards and two touchdowns in three games. Kupp is already nearing the halfway mark of his total yards from last year, once again showing that he will continue to improve throughout his career.
Goff has not quite taken the next step that many hoped he would. He has thrown for more than 200 fewer yards than he did through the first three games last year as well as throwing one more interception.
Despite that, Goff and Kupp have still been a strong duo. While Robert Woods and Brandin Cooks both have catch rates hovering above 50%, Kupp is comfortably sitting at a 74.2% catch rate on nearly 10 more targets.
Goff gave Kupp a lot of praise for his ability to get open and make things easy for Goff as a quarterback:
“He just continues to get himself open,” Goff said, “and he finds ways to be on the same page as me.”
Whatever may be working or may not be working, Kupp and Goff seem to be proving that they are a force to be reckoned with. As long as no injuries derail either’s season, the Rams should continue their winning ways.
