As of 2 p.m. on Thursday, March 13, Cooper Kupp is a free agent. Chances are, the former Los Angeles Rams receiver, Offensive Player of the Year, and Super Bowl MVP will not be a free agent once you’re reading this. Teams are hot after his services, and the Minnesota Vikings are doubtlessly interested. His ties with former Los Angeles Rams offensive coordinator Kevin O’Connell are strong, and we know how much KOC loves dynamic, versatile receivers.
Kupp enters free agency needing to make a choice: Does he want to max out his earning potential and try to still prove that he’s a No. 1 option, or does he want to take a lesser role and try to fit within the fabric of an offense that doesn’t necessarily need him?
There’s no shortage of options for Kupp if he wants to be the biggest fish in the pond. USA Today‘s Rams Wire cites the New England Patriots and Las Vegas Raiders, where he’d easily be the No. 1 receiver. Even with the Jacksonville Jaguars, he’d have a chance to be a high-end No. 2 behind Brian Thomas, similar to his role behind Puka Nacua last year.
Kupp has a ring, a Super Bowl MVP, a Triple Crown, and all the accolades a receiver could want. If anyone’s earned the right to take big money from a WR-hungry team like the Patriots, it’s him. But if he wants to win and doesn’t want to diminish his legacy, that might not be the smartest move.
Recent history is unkind to aging wide receivers still trying to hold on to their No. 1 status. Odell Beckham Jr. is the poster child for this, having a Hall of Fame trajectory through his first five seasons, only to break down in his late 20s. From 2020 (his age-28 season) to today, Beckham has just 1,476 total receiving yards — fewer than the 1,495 he had through the first 14 games of his career.
That’s far from the only instance of diminishing returns for a receiver once they turn 30. Amari Cooper was a notable example from last season. Cooper has been as high-end and durable as receivers come, and the Cleveland Browns traded him to the Buffalo Bills in the middle of the season. The stud receiver had just come off a 1,250-yard season after a season where Joe Flacco, Deshaun Watson, Dorian Thompson-Robinson, P.J. Walker, and Jeff Driskel all threw him passes. Now he was going to be Josh Allen‘s No. 1 target.
Or, so it seemed. A wrist injury limited Kupp to 20 catches on 32 targets, 297 yards, and two touchdowns in his eight games with the Bills.
Bad luck? Maybe. But that’s what happens to aging wideouts. We talk about how running backs take a beating throughout their career. However, with the league’s passing explosion, wide receivers are running more routes, getting more targets, and catching more balls than ever. In 2010, just two wide receivers hauled in 100-plus catches. Since 2020, that number has bounced between six and 11. That’s a lot of extra tackles, impacts, presses at the line of scrimmage, and opportunities to get hurt.
Kupp turns 32 in June, but if he goes to New England, Las Vegas, or even a WR1-less contender like Buffalo, the fanbase will expect him to be Cooper Kupp. That’s unrealistic, even without the injuries that limited him to 12 or fewer games in the past three seasons. It’d be setting himself up to disappoint, and maybe his legacy takes a hit. Was he just a product of Sean McVay’s system? is something you can easily envision someone asking in future Hall of Fame debates, should he not deliver in his next spot.
Other than KOC’s presence, the biggest selling point the Vikings can give Kupp is the ability to have expectations that he can deliver on. He won’t need to be Cooper Kupp in Minnesota. They have Justin Jefferson for that, and Jordan Addison (barring any suspension) will be entrenched as the No. 2 receiver. T.J. Hockenson is a great candidate to be J.J. McCarthy‘s go-to safety valve down the middle. The Vikings don’t need Kupp, making this arrangement appealing for both sides.
Kupp would be a pure luxury for Minnesota, thriving as a slot option that should still be able to pull off many of his old tricks. Considering the embarrassment of riches the Vikings already have, this could be a hat-on-a-hat. But since the Vikings are on a mission to make life as easy and comfortable as possible for McCarthy, a de facto rookie, adding someone of Kupp’s caliber might be a luxury that nudges closer to a necessity than we think.
As for Kupp, all he has to do to prove his worth in Minnesota is help the Vikings win. Be ready to make the most of 60 to 70 targets, thrive as a run blocker, and tap into the glory days for small spurts if players get injured or Addison gets suspended. If he’s a strong contributor for the Vikings as they make a deep playoff run (or hopefully, further), that speaks much more loudly to a Hall of Fame case than trying to hold onto No. 1/No. 2 status as he ages into his mid-30s.
Again, by the time you read this, Kupp may already have made his choice. He might already be a Viking, even. If he dons the Purple and Gold this week, Minnesota fans might be nervous about spending on an aging wide receiver, but they can at least be confident that this is the best spot for Kupp to succeed.
