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The New York Giants have worked hard to reshuffle their options at wide receiver this offseason, but the group still lacks a true superstar. Trading for a former triple-crown winner and Super Bowl champion would certainly remedy the missing star power.
Landing Cooper Kupp would require three draft picks, including the Giants’ first-round choice in the 2023 NFL draft. That’s the blockbuster scenario outlined by Bleacher Report’s Alex Kay, who also sends this year’s third-round pick and a 2024 third-rounder to the Los Angeles Rams to bring Kupp to MetLife Stadium.
It’s fanciful stuff, but as Kay pointed out, the Rams have “little cash to spare.” The franchise has also already traded marquee cornerback Jalen Ramsey to the Miami Dolphins.
Ramsey was dealt as part of an extensive makeover of an expensive and ageing roster. Kupp represents one of the Rams’ largest investments, accounting for a $27.8 million salary cap hit, according to Spotrac.com, including a base salary of $15 million for this season.
The Giants would have trouble accommodating those figures, but general manager Joe Schoen would surely try if it meant getting a wideout as versatile and gifted as Cooper.
Cooper Kupp Would Transform Giants’ Passing Game
There’s no harm in imagining how completely Kupp would transform a pedestrian Giants passing game. Simply put, he’d be the sure-handed playmaker at multiple levels head coach Brian Daboll, offensive coordinator Mike Kafka and quarterback Daniel Jones need to craft and execute a more expansive air attack.
Kupp showed off the full extent of his versatility, toughness and flair for the big play during a prolific 2021 season with the Rams when No. 10 led the NFL in every receiving category, per Pro Football Focus.
He capped a season that also saw him win NFL Offensive Player of the Year by being named MVP in Super Bowl LVI after catching the winning touchdown to beat the Cincinnati Bengals.
Kupp wasn’t anywhere near as prolific during a 2022 season when the Rams failed to muster even a semblance of a credible title defense. The veteran did still manage to gain 422 of his 812 yards after the catch, while also turning 42 catches into first downs, per Pro Football Reference.
Being physical enough to turn short passes into long gains and keep the chains moving continued to define Kupp’s game, before a sprained ankle that required surgery landed him on injured reserve after Week 10.
The Rams are unlikely to countenance any offers for Kupp, although three draft picks for a 29-year-old would surely get any general manager thinking. This trade would make life easier for Jones and change the makeup of the Giants’ offense, with Kay calling Kupp “a high-end wideout who can take the pressure off running back Saquon Barkley to carry the offensive burden.”
Daboll and Kafka have emphasized slot-style receivers to help Jones, but there’s nobody better in this role than Kupp.
Giants Still Have Work to Do at Wide Receiver
Returning receivers Sterling Shepard and Wan’Dale Robinson are natural fits for the slot. So is Parris Campbell, signed from the Indianapolis Colts in free agency.
The theme of featuring prolific inside receivers was also obvious when the Giants traded a third-round pick to the Las Vegas Raiders for Pro-Bowl tight end Darren Waller. Campbell and Waller are being counted on to help Jones justify the four-year contract worth $160 million the Giants handed him this offseason.
Adding Kupp to the mix would make sure the investment in Jones doesn’t go to waste. Kupp started last season leading “all wide receivers in slot receptions (26) and yards per slot route (2.8, min. 100 routes) this season. And no slot receiver moves the chains more often than Kupp — he has gained a first down on 13.9 percent of his slot routes going back to last season, making him the only WR with a rate above 11 percent,” according to The Next Gen Stats Analytics Team.
The numbers are exceptional, but not enough for the Giants to give up a first-round draft pick they should use to acquire a different type of wide receiver. Rather than trading for yet another slot specialist, Daboll and Schoen need to find a true vertical threat.
Their need helps explain the decision to host a visit with Tennessee’s Jalin Hyatt, per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero.
Hyatt averaged 18.9 yards per reception during his final season with the Volunteers. He’s the legitimate field-stretcher that’s been missing from Jones’ supporting cast.
Drafting Hyatt to join Campbell and Waller would complete a satisfactory overhaul of the weapons surrounding Jones. It would also leave the Giants with enough remaining draft capital to still address issues at cornerback and along both sides of the trenches.
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