Who Should I Start? Cooper Kupp or Zay Flowers

Wednesday, May 28, 10:14 PM

The Athletic's Michael-Shawn Dugar writes that new Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Cooper Kupp could work underneath in the middle of the field in his first year with the team, with Jaxon Smith-Njigba serving as the big-play threat deeper down the field. Kupp and Smith-Njigba have overlapping skill sets, and general manager John Schneider said the use of tight splits will make the two wideouts hard to defend. Seattle could align JSN more out wide as opposed to in the slot, where he spent 77.4% of his snaps last season. Smith-Njigba led all receivers in yards (956) and catches (79) from the slot in a breakout campaign. It will be interesting to see how offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak uses both Kupp and Smith-Njigba in 2025. Kupp is on the wrong side of 30 and has missed five or more games three seasons in a row due to injuries. JSN has the higher ceiling, and we can't count on a ton of volume from Kupp at this point in his career.

Wednesday, May 28, 11:00 PM

Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Zay Flowers (knee) was seen taking part in organized team activities on Wednesday. Flowers sprained his right knee in the Week 18 regular-season finale against the Cleveland Browns and was unable to play in either of the team's postseason games. The 24-year-old didn't need surgery in the offseason, though, and should be just fine for training camp this summer and the start of the 2025 regular season this fall. In his second NFL season, Flowers made the Pro Bowl by finishing with 74 catches on 116 targets for 1,059 yards and four touchdowns in 17 regular-season games (15 starts). In a run-first offense, Flowers thrives on efficiency and explosive plays with his elite speed, rather than on volume. With limited targets, Flowers' ceiling is probably as a low-end WR2 if he can find the end zone more often.