Who Should I Start? Cooper Kupp or Rico Dowdle

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.

Sunday, January 5, 9:23 PM

Dallas Cowboys running back Rico Dowdle rushed 22 times for 72 yards and a touchdown during Sunday's Week 18 loss to the Washington Commanders. He also caught two of his three targets for an additional 12 yards through the air. Dowdle was quite impressive throughout the 2024 season, supplanting Ezekiel Elliott as the Cowboys' undisputed No. 1 running back. He finished the campaign with 1,079 rushing yards, 249 receiving yards, and five total touchdowns through 16 games, ranking as a low-end RB2 in fantasy football. There has been plenty of speculation that the Cowboys could take an aggressive approach with their pursuit of a running back this offseason, such as drafting Ashton Jeanty. However, there's also a real possibility they feel confident in Dowdle and don't take as big of a swing for a backfield addition within the upcoming months. The 26-year-old currently still has appeal as a mid-range RB3 option heading into the 2025 campaign, and until Dallas brings in competition, this backfield belongs to Dowdle.