Rams WR Cooper Kupp picking up right where he left off prior to ankle surgery

IRVINE — If there was any concern about Rams wide receiver Cooper Kupp showing signs of rust following tightrope surgery to repair a high ankle sprain, he has dispelled it through the first two days of training camp.

On Thursday during 11-on-11s, Kupp slid for an over-the-shoulder catch with his back to the ball. He double-tapped a pass to himself, leaving defensive back Jordan Fuller hanging his head. And he beat Cobie Durant for a deep ball, easing his way into the end zone after making the catch. Each play drew a smattering of “Coop” cheers from fans in attendance.

“Man, it feels good,” Kupp said. “It’s great being back out here playing football again.”

As he recovered from his November injury, Kupp didn’t do much during the Rams’ offseason program. He missed part of minicamp following the birth of his third child, and when he was in attendance he largely worked on the sidelines rather than in action.

But he has been a full participant the first two days of training camp and has already seemed to return to the form that earned him NFL Offensive Player of the Year honors in 2021.

“That’s the amazing thing,” receiver Tutu Atwell said, “because some people, their confidence drops, they’re not feeling their body and stuff like that. He got right back into it like he never left.”

Kupp wasn’t ready to say on Thursday that he is back to his pre-injury self, but he is already seeing improvements across the first two days of work.

“Being at camp, things feel fast. It feels like they’re just moving a little faster than you’re used to,” he said. “But man, even just from the first day to the second day, things definitely starting to feel, ‘Ok, now we’re back into the groove, seeing things and being able to react off of them.’”

If there’s been any concern about protecting his body during camp, he has not shown it, willing to jump and dive as necessary to come down with catches during scrimmages and individual drills.

“There’s also that competitive piece where the ball’s in the air, it’s like, ‘Man, it’s my ball,’” Kupp said. “So there’s still that piece. And no matter where you’re at, health aside, once the ball snaps, you just go out and play football.”

This isn’t the first time that Kupp has come back from a season-ending injury. In 2018, he tore his ACL and MCL in Week 10. It didn’t take long for him to recover, returning in 2019 for his first 1,000-yard season.

He says the process is similar as he works back from the ankle surgery. He still understands the routes and concepts of the Rams’ offense, but he needs to react in live action and know that his body will respond as needed.

“So it’s going to be a process. It’s a process for everyone,” Kupp said. “There’s nothing like playing competitive football. You can’t simulate it. Obviously, I haven’t done it since November. But it’ll come back fast.”

But for all the time away from the team, Kupp has been on the same page with quarterback Matthew Stafford from the jump. The pair worked out together after OTAs this summer and again found their easy chemistry.

“That’s been kind of the weird but really cool thing,” Kupp said. “It’s kind of felt like that from the first time he was here in ’21. That OTAs, it just kind of like clicked.”

BRIEFLY

Rookie wide receiver Puka Nakua was taken off the cart on a stretcher and helped down the stairs into the Rams’ locker room at the end of practice, but the team confirmed the fifth-round pick was simply suffering from cramps.