What You Need to Know:

• Kupp racked up 191 targets, 145 catches, 1,947 yards and 16 TDs last season.
• All 4 marks were career highs. And all 4 marks led the league.
• Kupp scored 93.2 more PPR points and 31.5 more non-PPR points than any other WR.
• His 25.85 PPR points per game were the 5th most by a WR in NFL history.
• In addition to leading all WRs with 191 targets, Kupp also led with 56 red-zone targets. His 13 end-zone targets ranked 7th.
• Not surprisingly, Kupp led all WRs with 21.4 expected PPR points per game.
• But he was also efficient, scoring 4.3 more PPR points per game than expected. That was 3rd best behind only Deebo Samuel (+6.1) and Ja’Marr Chase (+4.4).
• Kupp’s 92.6 Pro Football Focus receiving grade was easily a career high and ranked 2nd among 89 WRs with 50+ targets.
• Kupp led those 89 WRs with 3.12 yards per route run – .14 more than anyone else.
• He’ll be back in HC Sean McVay’s offense in 2022.
• QB Matt Stafford returns for his 2nd season with Kupp and the Rams.
  • Stafford got an injection in his right elbow after the Super Bowl to address an issue that bothered him during last season. He didn’t throw during the offseason program but is expected to be throwing by training camp.
• WR Robert Woods was traded to the Titans in March. WR Odell Beckham remains unsigned as of mid-June after tearing his ACL in the Super Bowl.
  • Those 2 combined for 19.3% of the Rams’ targets, 17.7% of the catches, 17.6% of the receiving yards and 22.0% of the receiving TDs last year.
• The Rams signed WR Allen Robinson to a 3-year, $46.5 million deal in free agency. He figures to be the #2 WR, with Van Jefferson returning as the #3.
• Kupp will obviously have trouble matching last year’s stat line. But we’re not expecting major regression.
  • His 10.2 yards per target last season wasn’t even a career high. He averaged 10.3 yards per target back in 2018 (albeit in 8 games).
  • His 11.0% TD rate last year was high but not outlandishly so. He scored on 8.3% of his catches over his first 4 seasons.
• Despite ranking 11th in offensive pace and 4th in situation-neutral pace, the Rams finished just 18th with 62.2 offensive snaps per game last year.
  • That was down from 68.0, 65.9 and 66.3 plays per game the previous 3 seasons.
  • The Rams are a good bet to run more plays – and, therefore, throw more passes – this year.

Draft Sharks Bottom Line:

Kupp turned in a historic 2021 season, scoring the 5th most PPR points per game by a WR in NFL history.

He might be in an even better spot heading into 2022. HC Sean McVay and QB Matt Stafford return. But WRs Robert Woods and Odell Beckham are gone. The Rams added WR Allen Robinson in free agency, but Kupp should again be in for a boatload of targets.

It’d be absurd to expect Kupp to match last year’s production. But we’re also not projecting a significant step back. He’s 1 of the safest picks in fantasy football.