SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) \u2014 While Cooper Kupp donned a T-shirt Thursday in vehement support of quarterback Sam Darnold, the veteran wide receiver simultaneously\u2026<\/b>
\nWhile Cooper Kupp donned a T-shirt Thursday in vehement support of quarterback Sam Darnold, the veteran wide receiver simultaneously received heaps of praise from his teammates.
Four years removed from the most productive season of his career, Kupp will become the sixth player in NFL history to win a Super Bowl MVP, and then play in the Super Bowl with another team when he and the Seahawks square off with the New England Patriots on Sunday.
Unlike was the case in his prosperous 2021 season, Kupp didn\u2019t win the AP Offensive Player of the Year award, nor the receiving triple crown in 2025.
But, Kupp endeared himself to teammates like Dareke Young during the veteran wideout\u2019s first season with the Seahawks after eight exemplary ones with the Los Angeles Rams. Young has been most impressed with Kupp\u2019s unselfishness while Jaxon Smith-Njigba led the NFL in receiving yards.
\u201cHe won a Triple Crown, and then he comes and he\u2019s wide receiver No. 2,\u201d Young said. \u201cSome receivers might not like that. But, you can\u2019t tell if it upsets him or not. \u2026 that\u2019s just a guy that you aspire to be like, that\u2019s just team first.\u201d
It isn\u2019t just the way Kupp, 32, has embraced a secondary role that has stood out most to Young and others. Rather, it\u2019s how Kupp has led by example in myriad ways, which in the build-up to Super Bowl unsurprisingly deals with his preparation.
\u201cYou got to go through your process,\u201d Kupp said. \u201cAnd right now, it\u2019s about handling our business.\u201d
And whenever Kupp does speak up with his teammates, it\u2019s often worthwhile \u2014 like when he took the time to explain a play during Thursday morning\u2019s round of interviews.
\u201cIf he does say things, he\u2019s one of those guys where the entire room is dead silent, and they\u2019re super focused on what he\u2019s saying because we know that he doesn\u2019t waste his breath,\u201d Darnold said. \u201cHe\u2019s always going to be able to say something very mindful, and for us, speaking for the players, but also the coaches, he\u2019s had a huge impact on all of us in that building.\u201d
What Kupp has been best known for in his first year in the Emerald City is his run-blocking. On a team that finished the season with the 10th-most rushing yards per game, Kupp set the standard for what was expected of receivers on the perimeter despite his 6-foot-1, 205-pound frame.
\u201cCoop isn\u2019t a guy that lifts the whole weight room,\u201d Young said. \u201cSo, his technique is just always perfect, or has to be perfect when dealing with bigger guys so he doesn\u2019t get thrown around.\u201d
Smith-Njigba praised Kupp, who has 681 catches for 8,369 yards receiving and 59 touchdowns in his NFL career, for being so willing to put his body on the line. It\u2019s especially commendable from his teammates\u2019 perspectives considering injuries plagued Kupp over his last three years in Los Angeles, which contributed to his release by the Rams last season.
This year in Seattle, Kupp\u2019s practice repetitions were limited to help him get through a full season, which he nearly did while playing 16 out of 17 games and amassing the second-most yards receiving on the team with 593.
Kupp hasn\u2019t just been an inspiration for younger teammates like Rashid Shaheed, who used to watch highlights of him while he was a four-time FCS All-America wide receiver at Eastern Washington. Kupp has also provided the blueprint for how to replicate, or at least achieve similar success.
\u201cBeing his teammate, I see how he\u2019s had so much success throughout his whole career,\u201d Shaheed said. \u201cMan, he\u2019s so smart. I try to take bits and pieces from not only practice film, but from what he says in the meeting room. It\u2019s like having another coach on the field. He\u2019s an amazing guy.\u201d
And Kupp isn\u2019t interested in hanging up his cleats any time soon. He brushed aside any questions about him contemplating retirement, and offensive lineman Grey Zabel fully expects Kupp to continue playing for \u201cmany years\u201d thanks to his football IQ.
It would be quite the swan song if Kupp were to go out on top with his second Super Bowl championship and forgo the 2026 season. He might not be the star of the show for this Super Bowl the way he was in 2022, but Kupp has been around the block enough to know how to advise the Seahawks\u2019 prodigal wide receiver on how to handle himself ahead of the big game.
\u201cHe just tells me to be myself and just control the storm, the Super Bowl storm and make sure you\u2019re ready,\u201d Smith-Njigba said. \u201cHe\u2019s always preached process over results, so just sticking to the process and making sure I nail it down and I get up Sunday ready to go.\u201d
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