Four Trade Proposals For Rams WR Cooper Kupp

We’re at the point where there’s not just smoke around a potential blockbuster trade involving Rams WR Cooper Kupp. It’s a serious fire. In the span of less than a week, we went from teams calling the Rams “just to check” on whether Kupp was available to Los Angeles essentially shopping Kupp to teams willing to eat a pile of cash to get a second-round pick back. 

There are logistical hurdles to a potential Kupp trade, even if the Rams will foot the bill for the remainder of his scheduled $15 million 2024 base salary. Kupp already has $5 million guaranteed out of his $20 million 2025 compensation, aka this isn’t a no-strings-attached deal. He’s battled ankle injuries for three years and is currently working his way back from another. A second-round pick for a receiver on the wrong side of 30 is a lot to ask for and even a third would be significant. 

But the Rams sound motivated to make a deal happen, and I’ve learned over the years that when the Rams are motivated to make something happen, they usually find a way. 

The natural next question is who could the Rams find as a trading partner in a Kupp deal? Los Angeles’ willingness to pick up the tab opens up a broader market, as only about half the league right now would have the cap space to handle a Kupp trade without that. The bigger restriction will be the asking price. The team that trades for Kupp will be a contender with a need at receiver who figures the veteran’s contributions to a potential Super Bowl will outweigh a pick late in the order, even if it’s on Day 2. 

Ultimately I think if a deal comes together, it’s more likely to be for a third-rounder instead of a second. The precedent has already been set with other big-name receiver trades this season, and anything more for just a half-season rental (potentially) of Kupp would be steep. The Rams did trade CB Jalen Ramsey last offseason for just a third and a throw-in piece, but it’s worth noting they didn’t have to pick up any of Ramsey’s salary.  

Here are four potential proposals for a Kupp trade that I could see coming to fruition in the next couple of weeks:

Buccaneers

The deal: 2025 third-round pick, conditionally becomes a second if Tampa Bay reaches the Super Bowl and Kupp plays 60 percent of the snaps. 

Tampa Bay has been one of the more popular speculative destinations for Kupp because of how hard their receiving corps was hit on Monday night, losing WR Chris Godwin for the season and WR Mike Evans for a month. That probably won’t change now that the Chiefs have made their move and traded for WR DeAndre Hopkins. 

Frankly, there are a lot of ways in which a Kupp trade makes a ton of sense. The Buccaneers are 4-3 with wins against the Lions and Eagles under their belt and are currently in first place in the NFC South. They’re in a good position for a playoff spot and have a veteran-laden team with clear goals on contending. Kupp would be a clear boost and a one-for-one replacement for Godwin. 

It also is a huge factor that current Buccaneers OC Liam Coen held the same position with the Rams in 2022 and was Kupp’s assistant position coach for two of the first three years of his career. That sort of familiarity would help Kupp ramp up right away to replace Godwin, who was playing the same role for Coen this year that Kupp did in 2022. 

That said, there are some significant reasons why this might not pan out. The Bucs front office is usually frugal with draft picks, and giving up a Day 2 pick for a short-term rental is not normally a move in their playbook. It’s possible the two sides could put up some guard rails with conditions. If the Bucs win a Super Bowl this year, they won’t care about giving up a second-round pick, and those same conditions have been implemented for other deals this month. 

The other hangup is that Kupp is under contract for two more seasons and $5 million of his 2025 compensation is already guaranteed in the form of a roster bonus due in early March. The Buccaneers have Evans under contract on a big deal and will have an extension to consider for Godwin, who was in a contract year. Paying Kupp on top of that doesn’t make sense, so they’d either have to trade him again — which is possible — or just eat the $5 million and cut him. 

For now, I believe the Bucs when they say they’ll roll with their younger options first. But if those guys falter and/or Evans suffers another setback with his hamstring injury, that could force Tampa Bay to reconsider. 

Steelers

The deal: 2025 third-round pick, WR Calvin Austin

Pittsburgh has come up for just about every single notable receiver on the trade market in the past several months, so I would expect them to have interest in Kupp as well. Steelers HC Mike Tomlin has maintained he doesn’t just want to go 9-8, he has his sights set on the Super Bowl, which is why he switched quarterbacks even though Justin Fields was 4-2 as a starter in relief of Russell Wilson. Adding more firepower on offense seems to be a clear goal for the Steelers in pursuit of Tomlin’s greater goals. 

Kupp would be an interesting fit in Steelers OC Arthur Smith’s scheme. He’s at his best over the middle of the field and Smith’s offense this year has put a heavy emphasis on the sidelines, as both Fields and Wilson aren’t as adept attacking the middle of the field for differing reasons. But Kupp is an excellent blocker and has reliable hands, so there are ways he’d be able to fit in and contribute. 

The Steelers didn’t seem willing to put a second-round pick on the table for 49ers WR Brandon Aiyuk in August, so I doubt they’d go above a third for Kupp. They could include Austin in the deal as a little sweetener, as he has one more year on his rookie contract through 2025 and would give the Rams an alternative to WR Tutu Atwell. Pittsburgh has plenty of projected cap space next year as well, so it’s possible Kupp would be more than just a rental for 2024. 

Commanders

The deal: 2025 third-round pick, Washington’s own as they will get either the Eagles or the Dolphins’ selection as part of the trade of WR Jahan Dotson this summer, and CB Emmanuel Forbes

Washington has been a surprise to start the season in large part due to the brilliance of first-round QB Jayden Daniels, but he’s not the only one exceeding expectations. The offensive line hasn’t been the liability some people expected coming into the season, and the defense seems to be improving every week under HC Dan Quinn. The Commanders are right in the mix to win the NFC East. 

One of the glaring weaknesses remaining — though it hasn’t hurt the team too bad so far — is at wide receiver. Outside of No. 1 WR Terry McLaurin, Washington’s skill group is sparse on playmakers. Veteran TE Zach Ertz has been surprisingly productive but aside from him the Commanders are cobbling together a receiver room with Noah Brown, Olamide Zaccheaus, Dyami Brown and third-round rookie Luke McCaffrey. Not exactly household names. 

If this is Year 1 of Washington’s three-year window to maximize Daniels’ rookie contract where he’ll be ludicrously underpaid — and no it’s probably not too soon to start having that conversation — then there’s a good argument to be made that GM Adam Peters needs to shift gears from playing the long, rebuilding game. That includes surrounding Daniels with weapons, similar to what the Bears did with No. 1 pick Caleb Williams. 

Kupp would be the Keenan Allen for Daniels, a reliable, quarterback-friendly target who could chew up yards underneath in OC Kliff Kingsbury’s system and add even more teeth to what’s been an effective rushing attack. Washington has two third-round picks in 2025 and oodles of cap space, so they’re well-positioned to make a move like this. That includes carrying Kupp on the roster next year as well to further aid Daniels’ development. 

I’ve included Forbes as a throw-in here to better distinguish Washington’s potential offer from competitors. The former first-round pick is just in his second season but the regime that drafted him is gone and Forbes has seen inconsistent playing time. The Rams’ secondary is struggling mightily and could take a shot on a young player with two years remaining on his rookie contract. 

49ers

The deal: 2025 third-round pick, their compensatory selection. 

Intra-division trades are rare, especially when it comes to players of Kupp’s stature, but there are a few reasons why I wouldn’t completely discount San Francisco as a potential contender for Kupp. The 49ers’ skill positions have been hit hard by injury. They haven’t had RB Christian McCaffrey all year and just lost WR Brandon Aiyuk to a significant knee injury. 49ers TE George Kittle, WR Deebo Samuel and WR Jauan Jennings are all banged up and working through things. Worst of all, the 49ers are 3-4 in what’s supposed to be the last year of their Super Bowl window before the imminent mega-extension for QB Brock Purdy changes how they have to build the team. 

That means there should be a sense of urgency for the 49ers to do something ahead of the trade deadline, and Kupp might be the biggest name still available who could move the needle. The veteran wouldn’t replace Aiyuk as as an outside receiver. Truthfully he’d be a unique fit with San Francisco’s offense, his skill-set overlaps the most with Jennings of anyone. But he would be another potent weapon for an offense that feels like the Death Star when all the pieces are clicking together. His ability as a tough-nosed slot receiver who is terrific at settling into open space and a weapon as a blocker would mesh perfectly in HC Kyle Shanahan’s offense. 

The biggest hangups are cost. The 49ers have the most cap space in the league currently at almost $55 million and an extra third-round pick in 2025 due to the compensatory formula for losing DeMeco Ryans to the Texans. But they have needs looming in the future with Purdy’s contract and other aging core players. Draft picks and cap space will be precious assets, and a Day 2 pick for a short-term rental is a steep cost to pay. With Aiyuk, Samuel, Jennings and first-round WR Ricky Pearsall all under contract in 2025, keeping Kupp beyond this season would probably not be an option for San Francisco. 

The Rams also have to be willing to trade Kupp to an NFC West rival, but their front office is pretty forward-thinking, so I think that would be less of an obstacle than San Francisco getting caught up by the price.