A game against the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday is the last one that Rams star receiver Cooper Kupp is mandated to sit out because he is on injured reserve. But there is no guarantee that Kupp will return from his hamstring injury for the Oct. 8 game against the Philadelphia Eagles. Coach Sean McVay said Wednesday it is “the hope” that Kupp will play against the Eagles but stopped short of proclaiming it a done deal.

Related Players: Puka Nacua, Tutu Atwell, Van Jefferson

The 2021 NFL offensive player of the year suffered a season-ending ankle injury last year. Early in training camp, he suffered the hamstring injury that caused him to be placed on injured reserve.

It sounds as if the team will shoot for next week, but there is no guarantee on when he could return. Week 6 vs. the Arizona Cardinals feels the most likely.

Rookie WR Puka Nacua (oblique) will be listed as questionable for Sunday’s game against the 49ers, but Sean McVay said the Rams are expecting him to be ready to go.

Related Players: Van Jefferson, Tutu Atwell, Ben Skowronek, Demarcus Robinson

Nacua was a DNP for the last two days, so this is fantastic news. His Week 1 performance was surprising and maybe not sustainable (40.5% target share), but he should absolutely be in fantasy consideration if he's ready by Sunday.

Rams’ WR Puka Nacua did not practice today due to an oblique injury.

Related Players: Van Jefferson, Tutu Atwell, Ben Skowronek, Demarcus Robinson

It is clear the Rams are not allowed to have nice things in the Year 2023. Nacua had an incredible debut, accounting for 40.5% of the team's targets in Week 1. Atwell notched 8 targets for 119 yards and would presumably get similar usage if Nacua were to miss this game. It's a shot in the dark, but Demarcus Robinson could get some extra run along the perimeter like he had with the Ravens in '22, as well.

The Rams had not just one, but two receivers with more than 100 receiving yards on Sunday. Tutu Atwell set career highs with six catches for 119 yards, and rookie fifth-round pick Puka Nacua’s 10 catches for 119 yards were the most receiving yards in a rookie debut in team history.

And although fourth-year receiver Van Jefferson finished with just four catches for 24 yards, McVay said after the game that the receiver “is going to continue to be a big part of this as well.” Unlike last season when Jefferson was out with a knee injury, where defenses knew Kupp was Stafford’s most likely target, the Rams had multiple successful options.

Related players: Cooper Kupp, Matthew Stafford

The story said the depth at WR is one reason the team has a chance to survive without Kupp in the lineup, for at least the next three weeks. Another reason is the health of QB Stafford, who ended up not throwing for a touchdown but did have over 300 yards passing in the surprise win over Seattle. Atwell and Nacua will likely be waiver wire targets this week in your league, and along with Jefferson, are certainly worth looks if you're in need at the WR position.

The Rams trailed 13-7 at halftime, but they scored the final 23 points of the game with wide receivers Tutu Atwell and Puka Nacua playing a major role. Each of them posted 119 receiving yards as part of a big return to action for quarterback Matthew Stafford and head coach Sean McVay showered both wideouts with praise in his postgame comments.

Related players: Cooper Kupp

Atwell and Nacua are probably most known around dynasty communities, especially Nacua who garnered some attention this offseason when he was being used in a similar way to Deebo Samuel, and getting touches out of the backfield as well. Both players will likely get some attention this week on waiver wires after their Week 1 performances. With Kupp out of action for at least three more weeks, Atwell and Nacua could continue to get targets and touches.

Rams coach Sean McVay says WR Cooper Kupp is out Sunday as he deals with his hamstring injury.

Related Players: Van Jefferson, Puka Nacua, Tutu Atwell

What's worse, there's no guarantee that Kupp will avoid IR. Truly miserable news for fantasy and the WR himself, but we power on. Van Jefferson is now a very interesting fantasy piece and could absolutely be in Flex consideration as soon as this week. Nucua is an interesting hold on deep rosters, but the team has already shown their hand regarding Atwell as a rotational player.

Kupp is an obvious hold in all formats, regardless of a league's IR slot being active or not.

Without Kupp, Van Jefferson would step into the No. 1 receiver role, while Tutu Atwell and Puka Nacua would become Nos. 2 and 3. Depth receiver Ben Skowronek would likely play more on special teams this season than in the offense. But if Kupp is absent into the season, Skowronek knows each receiving position as well.

This depth chart is something else. Van Jefferson should be a fantasy target regardless of Kupp's health, but finding usable weeks for the other three options listed are sure to be hard to come by. Nacua is fine as a late-round dart, but Atwell has only one game of 60+ yards receiving and one other separate game with more than two receptions since being taken in the second round of the 2021 NFL Draft.

Rams head coach Sean McVay says Cooper Kupp has had a "setback." He calls it a "muscle strain."Day-to-day, per McVay.

"We're obviously a much better team when he's out there."

Related Players: Van Jefferson, Tyler Higbee, Puka Nacua, Demarcus Robinson, Tutu Atwell

These minor setbacks seem to be adding up for the 30-year-old Kupp's hamstring. Though fantasy drafters should refrain from overreacting, this certainly isn't a good look. Moving the surrounding cast of Ja'Marr Chase, Tyreek Hill, and Stefon Diggs over Kupp is not out of the question as it stands.

Rams’ offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur on the status of WR Cooper Kupp, who hurt his hamstring this week: “He’s day-to-day. He'll be back in the right time and stuff like that. So he is just going through the rehab process, but he's day-to-day. He'll be alright.”

Related Players: Ben Skowronek, Van Jefferson, Puka Nacua

Kupp walked off the field earlier this week after he "came up a bit" during a red zone route. This is good news, though it wouldn't be surprising if the team shuts him down until closer to Week 1. If drafters are scared off of Kupp, and you find him past his 1.05/1.06 ADP, feel free to pounce.

Per Rodrigue, it’s a little more complicated than names on a list. Limited to just the No. 3 position written on paper, it might be between third-year receiver Tutu Atwell and rookie Puka Nacua. Nacua had a significant workload in spring OTAs despite his rookie status, and that has not changed. Over the next few weeks without Kupp, he’ll vault into an even larger role alongside the more veteran players.

Related Players: Demarcus Robinson, Ben Skowronek

Rodrigue also mentioned that even if Cooper Kupp were to miss extended time, it's unlikely that any one player would somehow take over his entire workload, which falls in line with what we saw in 2022. Veteran Atwell's path to the WR3 slot is dependent on him being able to "do it all," which is a tall task for a player of his stature.

As it stands, both Atwell and Nacua make for very interesting dart throws in best ball drafts, particularly when you already have Matthew Stafford rostered.