Over the last few years, the Los Angeles Rams’ roster has included some of the most talented players in the National Football League. Two of those players were cornerback Jalen Ramsey and wide receiver Cooper Kupp.
The Rams drafted Kupp in the third round of the 2017 NFL Draft. They traded two first-round picks and a fourth-round pick to the Jacksonville Jaguars for a disgruntled Ramsey in 2019.
Kupp and Ramsey would go on to have productive tenures with the Rams. Ramsey would register ten interceptions, 47 passes defended, and over 240 tackles in four years with the Rams. It was the best four-year stint of his career.
Kupp noted how difficult it was to prepare for games while practicing against Ramsey.
"Man, it was always challenging,” Kupp said. “I mean the competitiveness. I don't know what you tag as a unicorn of a football player and what he's able to do. It was just so much fun competing against him.
“My first memory of him was when he came in, we were playing against Atlanta and he had just come into the building basically on like Wednesday or Thursday. It might've even been later than that, but they basically were like, ‘Hey, look, you're just guarding [Former Atlanta Falcons WR] Julio [Jones] the whole game.
“He came in not knowing any of his stuff and just locked down Julio man to man.
“It was unbelievable to watch someone like that be able to play like that against one of the best receivers of all time. It speaks to just the kind of player that he is. He's special."
Since being drafted, Kupp has been one of the most productive wide receivers in the league. He has averaged over 1,300 yards per 17 games. He noted how practices with Ramsey helped his development.
"All those 'Mamba' periods,” Kupp said. “There were a lot of times when he played that star role for us for a while, and with me playing in the slot a lot of the time, we ended up being matched up on each other often.
“It was always so competitive. The physicality and urgency he plays with make you meet him there. You can't hesitate at all. It was something I appreciated about the way that Jalen played the game."
