A fourth-quarter ankle injury forced Cooper Kupp out of the Los Angeles Rams’ 27-17 loss to the Arizona Cardinals.
Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reported Sunday night that Kupp appears to be “going to miss some time, but the injury isn’t catastrophic,” adding that he will still undergo further testing.
He landed awkwardly while catching a throw from Rams backup quarterback John Wolford, and rolled his right ankle. After being helped up, Kupp hopped onto the sideline bench without putting any weight on it.
The Rams fell to last place in the NFC West with a 3-6 overall record and a 1-3 mark in the NFC West after Kupp did not return to the game.
Sean McVay expressed concern about Kupp’s injury during his post-game press conference, saying while he would speak with the medical staff later, initial reports were not encouraging.
It didn’t look good, it didn’t sound good,” McVay told reporters. “I don’t have anything right now.”
As the Rams offense has struggled to get going this season, Kupp has collected 100+ receiving yards five times and averaged 101.6 yards per game.
He hauled in four catches for 44 yards in the Rams’ first game against the Cardinals, his worst outing of the season so far. Those numbers, however, pale in comparison to Kupp’s struggles on Sunday, when he caught three of five targets for –1 yards before the injury, which was his first negative receiving yardage in his career. Although Kupp played without his starting quarterback, Matthew Stafford, who is still in concussion protocol, this was still a significant drop in production.
If Kupp’s ankle injury is severe, as McVay indicated, the Rams will need to find a way to play without their star.
Next Sunday, Los Angeles will visit the similarly struggling New Orleans Saints.