Who Should I Start? Cooper Kupp or Brandon Aiyuk

Saturday, February 22, 11:31 AM

The Athletic's Jourdan Rodriguez writes that if the Los Angeles Rams can't trade wide receiver Cooper Kupp this offseason, they could cut him instead. Things are a bit tricky, though: Cutting him before June 1 would incur $22.26 million in dead money while saving only $7.5 million. Kupp has a roster bonus of $7.5 million due on March 17. If the Rams were to designate him as a post-June 1 cut, they'd have $14.8 million in dead money while saving $15 million. According to a league source, the Rams didn't ask Kupp about a contract restructure and appear to be willing to eat some money in order to facilitate a trade. The 31-year-old wideout has been in decline ever since recording the receiving Triple Crown in 2021 with 145 catches, 1,947 yards and 16 touchdowns. Injuries are mostly to blame -- he hasn't played more than 12 games the last three years -- but he could still be fantasy relevant in the right situation elsewhere.

Tuesday, February 11, 2:41 PM

San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk (knee) could be ready for Week 1 of the 2025 NFL season, though his status is uncertain for now. The 26-year-old suffered a torn ACL and MCL in October of last season, so the recovery timeline makes it realistic for him to be ready for the start of the new campaign. Following a 1,400-yard receiving season in 2023, the 49ers signed Aiyuk to a four-year, $120 million contract. Unfortunately, he could only produce 25 receptions for 374 yards and no touchdowns in seven games in 2024. That said, Aiyuk could be a value pick in fantasy football coming off the injury, especially since Deebo Samuel appears to finally be on the way out of San Francisco via trade at some point this offseason.