Who Should I Start? Cooper Kupp or Christian Kirk

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.

Friday, February 21, 11:12 AM

ESPN's Dan Graziano puts the odds at 75 percent that the Jacksonville Jaguars cut wide receiver Christian Kirk (collarbone) this offseason. Kirk has one year left on his current deal and is scheduled to make $16.5 million in 2025. However, he's coming off a season-ending broken collarbone and has seen his production decline the last two years due to injuries, and the Jaguars have a new head coach and offensive system and will have a new general manager soon. They also signed Gabe Davis last offseason, and Brian Thomas Jr. took over in 2024 as a legitimate No. 1 wideout. Cutting Kirk would save $10.4 million in 2025 salary cap space. Other potential cap cuts to free up money are receiver Josh Reynolds ($4 million) and tight end Evan Engram ($6 million). It's highly unlikely Jacksonville cuts both Kirk and Engram this offseason.