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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.

ESPN's Kevin Seifert reports that the Minnesota Vikings are in no rush to place the franchise tag on impending free-agent quarterback Sam Darnold despite his career year in 2024. It doesn't mean they won't eventually use it on the 27-year-old signal-caller, and it doesn't rule out the team giving him a multi-year extension. Another option is that the Vikings tag Darnold and then trade him for draft-pick compensation. Keeping Darnold on the tag in 2025 would cost Minnesota around $40 million, which would be a questionable decision with former first-rounder J.J. McCarthy (knee) waiting in the wings as the franchise QB. Seifert believes the most likely scenario is that the team lets Darnold sign elsewhere while saving the tag for a player like cornerback Byron Murphy Jr., who had a career-high six interceptions in 2024. Darnold set career-highs last year across the board but also had just one TD and a 53% completion percentage in the last two games.

NFL executives believe Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Cooper Kupp will have a solid trade market this offseason because he's quarterback-friendly, makes contested catches and is an extremely hard worker. There are questions about the 31-year-old's lower-body injuries, but he did manage 67 receptions for 710 yards and six touchdowns while missing five games in 2024. The Rams might have to eat some of the $20 million Kupp is due in 2025 to facilitate a trade, but ESPN's Jeremy Fowler mentions the New England Patriots, Pittsburgh Steelers, Detroit Lions, Washington Commanders and Kansas City Chiefs as a few teams that could be interested. An AFC executive said the Pats would be "foolish" not to look at Kupp, while the Steelers were already interested in Kupp at last year's trade deadline. All but $5 million of his $20 million salary in 2025 is guaranteed in the form of a roster bonus.

In Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell's Coach of the Year news conference, he said, "Our goal is to win a championship and Sam Darnold is going to be a huge part of it when we do it," When asked to clarify, O'Connell said that Darnold has "earned the right to be a free agent, but we will continue to have ongoing dialogue and discussions with him and his representation." O'Connell went back on his comments a bit and said his previous comments about Darnold were made "in the spirit of answering a question about Darnold's season." Darnold had a career season in 2024, but his struggles in the final two games might make the Vikings more apt to give first-rounder J.J. McCarthy a shot in 2025 and let another team spend on Darnold. The Vikings also have former Giants QB Daniel Jones as an insurance policy in case they let Darnold walk in free agency.

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reports that the Los Angeles Rams are willing to eat some of veteran wide receiver Cooper Kupp's $7.5 million signing bonus for the 2025 season to facilitate a trade this offseason. It's no secret that the Rams were shopping Kupp at last year's trade deadline. Although they ended up keeping him around, Kupp went public on Monday that the Rams want to trade him this offseason. At this point, it would be a surprise if the 31-year-old was in L.A. next season. The former third-rounder in 2017 out of Eastern Washington had the receiving Triple Crown in 2021 but hasn't played more than 12 games in a season since due to injuries and is on the wrong side of 30. Kupp could still be productive in a new uniform in 2025, depending on where he ends up, but for fantasy purposes, managers need to weigh his injury risk heavily when considering him in drafts this fall.