Since entering the league in 2017 out of Eastern Washington, Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Cooper Kupp has been one of the best receivers in the game — bar none.
From 2017 to present day, Kupp has recorded 523 receptions for 6,595 yards and 47 touchdowns, going from a third-round pick into the top receiver in the game.
As is well known, the last time Kupp faced off against the Steelers in 2019, Pittsburgh held him without a catch at then-Heinz Field in a wild 17-12 win that saw a defensive touchdown by each team. Chances of that happening again this time on Sunday are slim and none.
Following his return to the lineup in Week Five against the Philadelphia Eagles, Kupp has recorded two straight 100-yard games and already has 15 receptions for 266 yards and one touchdown, picking up right where the left off with quarterback Matthew Stafford.
While Kupp will be a handful on Sunday for the Pittsburgh Steelers’ defense throughout the game, the Steelers have to be ready for the onslaught that Kupp tends to do in the fourth quarter.
Dating back to the 2020 season, Kupp sits ninth in the NFL in receptions in the fourth quarter, according to Stathead, generating 82 receptions on 100 targets for 986 yards and six touchdowns. Factor in that Kupp has missed 13 games since 2020, including eight last season and four so far this season, those numbers from Kupp could be even higher.
On a per-game basis from 2020-23, Kupp averages nearly two catches for 23 yards in the fourth quarter. That might not seem like a big number, but it is in comparison to his peers.
For instance, the top three receivers ahead of him in the NFL in that same span from 2020-2023 are Minnesota’s Justin Jefferson, Buffalo’s Stefon Diggs and Miami’s Tyreek Hill. Jefferson, Diggs and Hill all have 55 games played in that span to Kupp’s 43. Jefferson’s numbers aren’t that far ahead of Kupp’s as he has 88 receptions for 1,407 yards and 10 touchdowns. Diggs sits at 86 receptions for 1,207 yards and seven touchdowns, while Hill is at 83 receptions for 1,184 yards and 14 touchdowns.
On a per-game basis, that’s not at all that far off from Kupp. Jefferson averages 1.6 catches, 25.6 yards and .18 touchdowns per game in the fourth quarter. Diggs averages 1.56 catches, 21.94 yards and .12 touchdowns per game in the fourth quarter. Hill sits at 1.5 catches, 21.5 yards and .25 touchdowns per game in the final 15 minutes of action.
If healthy, Kupp would have obliterated those numbers in the fourth quarter. Just extrapolating his current averages to a full 55-game sample to match Jefferson, Kupp would have 104 receptions, 1,261 yards and eight touchdowns.
Pretty impressive stuff.
Chances are on Sunday that the game between the Rams and Steelers will be close entering the fourth quarter. That’s the style of football Pittsburgh likes to play, and Los Angeles — despite its star-studded offense — isn’t much of a big-play offense. Instead, they move the football methodically. Los Angeles has 27 plays offensively of 20-plus yards while its longest play of the season is 49 yards.
If the game is close entering the fourth quarter, the Steelers will have to be on top of their game as Stafford will be looking Kupp’s way. Since joining the Rams in 2021 via a trade from Detroit Lions, Stafford has completed 96 passes in the fourth quarter with the Rams. In that same span, Kupp has 65 catches in the fourth quarter.
When things get tight late, Stafford is looking Kupp’s way, fitting that “Nine and Dime” podcast name that the two have together.
The Rams are going to try and fill up their Kupp as much as possible through the air on Sunday. Pittsburgh just has to make sure that Kupp doesn’t runneth over, especially in the fourth quarter.
