Cooper Kupp is sticking around Los Angeles for at least the next few years. The team announced that they’ve signed the wideout to a three-year extension. NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reports (via Twitter) that the deal is worth up to $48MM.
Earlier this week, there was some pessimism surrounding a Cooper Kupp/Rams extension, but the two sides apparently made up some ground. Earlier today, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reported (via Twitter) that the organization and the wideout had “made significant progress on a large new contract extension.”
We heard on Wednesday that the Rams were still pushing for a deal, but reports indicated that there was still “a lot of work to be done.” It was always going to be tough for the Rams to give Kupp a significant pay increase on his $2MM salary for the upcoming season. The organization is right against the cap, especially after they inked cornerback Jalen Ramsey to a new deal. Of course, the Rams have some flexibility to pay Kupp in future seasons (although they were projected to have just $9MM in space in 2021 prior to this extension).
While the Rams’ lack of cap space was a concern, it was also going to be tough to settle on a final number. As our own Dallas Robinson noted earlier this week, Jarvis Landry is the only slot receiver to be in the top-15 highest-paid players at his position ($75.5MM). Kupp could probably argue for more than that, but you’ve got to assume that the front office was wary of overspending on the wideout.
The 2017 third-round pick has been a productive member of the Rams offense since his rookie season, but he took it to a new level in 2019 after appearing in 16 games for the first time in his career. The 27-year-old set career-highs in receptions (94), receiving yards (1,161), and touchdowns (10). With Brandin Cooks now out of the picture in Los Angeles, Kupp will have a chance to build off those numbers in 2020.
Where do the Rams keep getting their cash from?
Plenty of teams could operate like this. They are just top scared to.
I’m pretty sure we have the richest owner in the game. Don’t fact check me, but we definitely have the most expensive stadium ever built
Just checked 3rd richest
But check who his wife is. Dude is straight LOADED
Scared of what? Locking virtually their entire cap into about a tenth of the roster? Where was the replacement for Littleton? Who’s going to take over for Whitworth when he retires? Do they have any cornerback depth beyond Ramsey? Is Floyd really going to make up for the absence of Fowler? Who’s going to step up on the defensive line between Donald and Brockers?
I have a strong feeling the Rams are going to be biting themselves for not saving money to go after veteran contributors and key role players in future free agency periods. They had better hit on their draft selections, or else they will be signing a large portion of their roster to minimum deals
That cap will be a mess for the next few years.