Matthew Stafford Shares Honest Thoughts on Rams Deciding to Part Ways With Cooper Kupp

Matthew Stafford decided to return to the Los Angeles Rams this offseason, but one of his favorite targets, Cooper Kupp, is not expected to be back with him. Kupp announced in February that the Rams told him they intend to trade him. On Monday, ESPN's Adam Schefter reported that the Rams were likely to release Kupp on Wednesday if they were unable to find a trade partner for the receiver.

For the first time since he joined the Rams in 2021, Stafford will not have Kupp on his team. Stafford spoke on Kupps' imminent departure to Travis and Jason Kelce on the New Heights podcast.

"I ran into him right when they told the news that they were talking about trading him, that one is tough," Stafford told Travis and Jason. "You're around this game long enough, those kind of things happen. It's tough, especially for a guy that's meant so much to me and my career. How he helped me get in with the Rams in that locker room, what it's all about to be part of that team, he was such a huge part of that for me. I've probably spent more time with him as a teammate than any other teammate in my career. And that just happened organically."

Stafford recalled that he and Kupp would come into the facility early nearly every day to watch film together, and credited Kupp for helping him initially adjust to the team.

Stafford added: "He's meant a ton to me as a player, but even more probably as a person. ... He's a fantastic player, he means a ton to our team, but just as a human being, as a person, he's as good as it gets. I love Cooper and would love the opportunity to continue to play with him. ... Whoever gets him, he's a fantastic person for the locker room, for the team, and when he's healthy he's still ballin."

Kupp and Stafford formed one of the top quarterback-receiver duos in the NFL when Stafford initially arrived in 2021. Their 2021 season was so prolific that Kupp won the triple crown and Super Bowl MVP. Injuries limited the duo from returning to those heights over the next three seasons, and the Rams have chosen to move on from Kupp.

Now Stafford will have the opportunity to form a new duo with Davante Adams, who signed a two-year deal with the team over the weekend.