Former 1,900-Yard WR Named Possible Trade Target for Chiefs: ‘Natural Fit’

Injuries are plaguing the Kansas City Chiefs’ wide receivers, with the latest injury to Rashee Rice making the receiver room devoid of talent for the foreseeable future. That’s why Bleacher Report’s Alex Kay came up with a list of possible trade targets for the two-time defending Super Bowl champions, and on that list is Los Angeles Rams receiver Cooper Kupp.

“Despite his availability woes, the Kansas City Chiefs would have to have at least some interest in acquiring Kupp,” Kay wrote on October 1. “He’s been an absolute game-changer at his best and consistently delivers in the biggest moments, including putting up an eye-popping 33-catch, 478-yard, six-touchdown stat line across L.A.’s four-game Super Bowl run three years ago.

“A change of scenery may also help Kupp get a fresh start after missing so much time in recent years,” Kay continued. “He’d be a natural fit in Kansas City’s system and would make its veteran-laden crew of pass-catchers even more dangerous come January if he can find a way to stay healthy.”

What to Know About Cooper Kupp

Kupp, 31, entered the NFL as a third-round pick of the Rams in the 2017 NFL Draft. During his first four seasons in the NFL with quarterback Jared Goff under center, Kupp, who plays in the slot and along the boundary, managed to record over 900 receiving yards twice (2019, 2020), with his lone 1,000-yard season during that timeframe happening in 2019.

In 2021, the Rams and Detroit Lions conducted a blockbuster trade that sent Goff to the Lions and Detroit QB Matthew Stafford to the Rams. During the 2021 season, Stafford fully unlocked Kupp’s potential. Kupp registered 145 receptions — the second-most in a single season in NFL history —  1,947 yards, and 16 touchdowns. Kupp’s season-long effort earned him the Associated Press’s Offensive Player of the Year award.

The issue that has plagued Kupp since his historical season is injuries. He has missed a total of 15 games since the 2022 season and is set to miss more games due to a high-ankle sprain he suffered in Week 2, which highlights durability concerns former the former All-Pro wideout.

Chances of Chiefs Wanting or Landing Cooper Kupp

Though Kupp would fit nicely into Kansas City’s offensive scheme, the chances of them wanting or even being able to trade for him are slim.

Stafford and Rams head coach Sean McVay adore Kupp, so that might weigh heavily on the organization in terms of their desire to trade him away. However, the Rams are in a competitive rebuild and need to accumulate more draft capital for the next couple of drafts. Because of that, it would make sense for them to trade away Kupp for assets while also getting his $27+ million cap hits over each of the next three years off their books.

As for the Chiefs, it’s a hard argument to make that they would want to trade for an oft-injured receiver even if it is one of Kupp’s caliber. He’s reliable when healthy, but his lack of durability makes him not very reliable overall. That doesn’t pair well with a Chiefs team that would need him to stay healthy for the rest of the season for them to make an extended playoff run.