NFC Notes: Cooper Kupp, Geno Smith, 49ers, Rams, Seahawks

49ers

Matt Barrows of The Athletic did a mailbag answering some of the trending questions surrounding the 49ers’ offseason.

• With WR Deebo Samuel on the way out, Barrows names Bills WR Amari Cooper, Bears WR Keenan Allen and Cowboys WR Brandin Cooks as short-term solutions in free agency.
• Barrows mocked Texas A&M Edge Nic Scourton to San Francisco in the second round but also mentions Georgia Edge Mykel Williams as an option for pick No. 11 overall.
• In terms of a trade-up, Barrows would entertain the idea of moving a third-round pick to get Michigan DT Mason Graham.
• Barrows also brings up Cowboys LB Eric Kendricks as a free-agent target if they don’t retain LB Dre Greenlaw or De’Vondre Campbell.

Rams

The Rams have had a noisy offseason with the news they are looking to move on from WR Cooper Kupp and the uncertainty surrounding QB Matthew Stafford. Fox Sports’ Colin Cowherd said Los Angeles isn’t happy with the continued questions at quarterback and how Kupp made their trade intentions public.

“The Rams like Matt Stafford but they’re tiring of the constant quarterback talk, his wife saying things publicly, they’re not real happy with Cooper Kupp going public with something they tried to keep quiet,” Cowherd said, via The Herd. “They’re kind of over Cooper Kupp and with that, a little bit, Matt Stafford. They like him, but they don’t want to restructure his deal and give him a big contract.”

Seahawks

Seahawks OC Klint Kubiak said the opportunity to work with QB Geno Smith was a big deal for him and was a big reason why he came to Seattle.

“I have a lot of respect for Geno,” Kubiak said, via The Athletic. “It was a huge draw to come here and be able to get to coach him, alongside (QB coach) Andrew Janocko. We have high expectations for him. [We’ll] push Geno and get the best out of him, and we’ll do that by pushing his teammates as well. It’s not just his show; it’s a team thing, and he’s got to be the head of that.”

Seahawks HC Mike Macdonald reiterated that Smith is their quarterback and he believes that the team can win a championship with him at the helm.

“Heck yeah,” Macdonald says. “Geno’s our quarterback. … It’s pretty obvious this guy is a heck of a quarterback. He’s our quarterback. We love him. Can’t wait to go work with him. We’ve had a lot of non-football conversations, to keep it legal, over the last month or so. I know he’s really excited about Klint taking over. He’s a great player, man. We can win a championship with Geno Smith. We really believe that.”

Macdonald added that Kubiak’s track record with quarterbacks was a huge selling point in bringing him into the organization.

“(Quarterbacks) have played at a really high level every stop that he’s been,” Macdonald said, referring to a list that includes Kirk Cousins, Brock Purdy and Derek Carr. “The evolution of the scheme, too, being able to fit it to your personnel, Klint has a really great vision for where he wants our offense to go. He was very clear with that with the personnel we have on our roster. We’ll talk about it as we go here, but I definitely believe that aligns with how we want to rock.”