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Should I drop Cooper Kupp for fantasy football Week 5? Is Cooper Kupp a safe player to cut? Read the fantasy football waivers outlook.
Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Cooper Kupp is certainly in the tail end of his career. He had an absolutely meteoric rise through fantasy rankings and in the minds of Los Angeles Rams fans due to his remarkable 2021 season.
However, he's seen a decline in production each year since then. He's 32 years old, so that makes sense, but sometimes 32-year-old wide receivers are still startable in fantasy football. Just look at Davante Adams.
Kupp has underperformed this season, though. He was seen as a sleeper pick and potential comeback candidate, but his play hasn't been very inspiring. Is there reason to think he will improve, or is it all but over for the former superstar?
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Should I Drop Cooper Kupp in Fantasy Football?
Kupp has had one good game this season. It was in Week 2 when he scored 16.0 PPR fantasy points against the Pittsburgh Steelers. But he's failed to reach double-digit points in any of his other contests. He's the WR56 overall, meaning he's not even worth starting in 12-team leagues.
Aside from extremely deep leagues, he's better off on the bench or on waivers, and he hasn't done much for fantasy teams so far. Of the Seahawks receivers, it's been Jaxon Smith-Njigba who's produced fantasy-relevant production and nobody else.
Not sure if I've already posted this, but there are a lot of reasons to completely avoid Cooper Kupp in this year's drafts. I wouldn't feel comfortable having him on my roster. Much worse situation, much worse player than 2021-2022 pic.twitter.com/PnmpHkCqIy
— JohnJohn Analysis (@JohnJohnalytics) May 24, 2025
Kupp's decline could be seen in his statistical production and basically every advanced statistic you could find. He simply isn't the same player he used to be, and there are multiple easy explanations -- he's old, and he has a very long injury history.
Kupp has had many severe injuries, and though he's had surgery to address some of them, playing in the NFL is brutal, and players pick up lifelong ailments that get worse over time. Injuries are a big driving factor in forcing players to retire, as they simply can't take the punishment anymore and end up limited athletically.
Some of Cooper Kupp's injury history:
-Groin pull
-Sprained MCL
-Torn ACL
-Knee bruise
-Low ankle sprain
-High ankle sprain
-Hamstring strain
-Low ankle sprain again
-High ankle sprain again
All in his left leg. Does no one really think that leg is cooked? pic.twitter.com/plGinwkvRD— JohnJohn Analysis (@JohnJohnalytics) March 14, 2025
This is the beginning of the end for him. He's still a solid route runner, but he's not on a high-volume passing offense. It's hard to see him being fantasy-relevant from here on out, even if he has some decent production moving forward.
Who Should I Pick Up for Fantasy Football?
There are quite a few options you could go for at the wide receiver position, though after waivers have cleared, a lot of them are speculative. Cleveland Browns wide receiver Isaiah Bond played nicely in Week 4, and it appears that he could nab the No. 1 wideout spot for them in the absence of WR Cedric Tillman (hamstring).
The quarterback situation is changing there, though, and rookie Dillon Gabriel is set to start in Week 5. This could make it difficult for their passing offense to do much, especially since they face the suffocating Minnesota Vikings defense in Week 5.
I still do not understand why Christian Kirk faded this route inside when he had all the room in the world to the outside.
Stroud throws the football away from the safety but since Kirk came in towards the hash it’s incomplete.
Huge missed opportunity here pic.twitter.com/bjgpbHsMbP
— Jacob (@TexansJacob) September 22, 2025
And if Houston Texans wide receiver Christian Kirk is a free agent or on waivers in your league, you should probably consider grabbing him, too. He's been battling through injuries, but remains the starting slot receiver for his team. That could lead to some nice PPR value down the road.
He hasn't produced much, but it looks like he might not quite be on the same page as his quarterback, C.J. Stroud, yet. He could improve with time.
Who Should I Pickup Tool
Trying to decide who to pick up off the waiver wire? Check the Who Should I Pickup tool here:
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2025 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on players like Kendrick Bourne, Jalen Tolbert, Tory Horton, Demarcus Robinson, Rashod Bateman, Sterling Shepard, Jayden Higgins, Luke McCaffrey. They are some of the most common searches for 2025 fantasy football waiver wire pickups.
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Popular Player Comparison Searches - Who To Pick Up
Below are some popular searches and comparisons from our Who To Pickup tool for 2025 for Kendrick Bourne, Jalen Tolbert, Tory Horton, Demarcus Robinson, Rashod Bateman, Sterling Shepard, Jayden Higgins, Luke McCaffrey:
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