Jan 27, 2026
3 min read
In his first season with Cooper Kupp returned to the Super Bowl after a big win in the NFC Championship for his former team.
After beating the Rams in the NFC Championship game, Cooper Kupp received a text message from linebacker Ernest Jones IV.
before deciding to sign with free agency in March. Kupp contacted Jones. His former Rams teammate was traded to Seattle last season. to ask about the Seahawks ten months later. On his way back to the Super Bowl after defeating his former team in the NFC Championship Game, Jones texted his teammates a screenshot of the March trade.
"EJ texted me last night, he texted me the first time I reached out to him," Jones said.
Jones' reaction when Kupp arrived last spring?
"They said, 'We're competing for the Super Bowl, we're there.'""He sent me, 'I told you so.'
It's been an eventful year for Kupp, with the Rams opting to release him in March after trying to trade him, ending an eight-year run in Los Angeles.Kupp, a former major leaguer, Offensive Player of the Year and Super Bowl MVP, had a chance, but the Yakima native ultimately decided to return to his home state to join a team on the rise under new head coach Mike Macdonald.
Cope hoped that, as Jones told him, they could be contenders, and thanks to Sunday's win over the Rams, Seattle's ninth straight, they're not just contenders, they're headed to the Super Bowl.
"I'm speechless about it," Kupp said."It's been an amazing ride. Just seeing the excitement around here. Being a part of this team, this organization, seeing the excitement that's out there about Seattle, how many people have bought into this and stepped into what we've created in this building and how it's finished. It's really cool to be a part of it and we're looking forward to some tours in a few weeks. It's great."
Kupp hasn't been Seattle's top target this year — that role was filled by Jackson Smith-Nigba, who led the NFL in receiving yards with 1,793 — but he's played a vital role in Seattle's success, both with the ball coming to him and his leadership down the field.He also played a key role in Seattle's playoff run, catching five passes for a team-high 60 yards in a win against the 49ers, then making the most of his four receptions against the Rams.While Kupp finished Sunday's game with just 36 yards, he made some incredibly big catches
Kupp's first catch of the game went 13 yards on third-and-9, extending the third quarter drive.Three plays later, Kupp made a key block to help Jaxon Smith-Njigba turn a short pass into a 12-yard gain.And three plays later, Sam Darnold hit Kupp for a 13-yard touchdown that made it 31-20 at the time, and proved to be the winning score.
Then, in the fourth quarter, Kupp had a critical third down, driving through the line to convert it on third-and-7, which would see 4:29 burn to extend the clock, putting the game on ice.Without that first down, or at least a catch with enough yards for Mike McDonald to run on fourth-and-short, it would have been a punt with about three minutes left, plenty of time against a dangerous Rams offense.he thought he should go ahead in the big moment.That instinct proved correct, and he did.
"It was great to be there, and there was a part of me that knew at the end of the game, 'Man, it's going to come down to me to make the play,'" Kupp said. "I know it is, so to be in that position and be able to make that play, it meant a lot. It was great to be there."
And none of Kupp's teammates were surprised that he came up big in those important moments.
"I mean, I knew he was going to grab it," Smith-Njigba said."The way he prepares, he's ready now. Play by play, he shuts down the run game and the pass game. Having a guy like Coop that we can count on is going to take this team to a higher level.
"I'm so happy for him. Like I said, we wouldn't be the team we are without Coop. What he brings on and off the court. He's a true leader, a true warrior, and it's an honor to stand next to him. I can't thank him enough for how he's elevated my game."
After the game, Kupp caught up with former teammates Matthew Stafford and Puka Nacua, then met his wife and children.With one game remaining, Kupp's first year in Seattle has been a magical ride, although he admits there are some mixed emotions considering the close relationships he maintains with some of his former teammates and coaches.
"It's nice," Kupp said."For the story to be what it is, having to go through the Rams to get to where we want to be, in the NFC championship right now, yeah, the writers did a good job with that."
"In those times, hard, because of the men on the floor last night, most of them are the best friends, so is a contract, so that a contemptuous friends is, it's a contemptuous.
And 10 months after Jones gave a positive review of his time with Kupp, he was delighted to see Kupp get this moment on the big stage against his former team.
"I'm really happy for Cupp," said Jones, who was traded to Tennessee from the Rams before the 2024 season and sent to Seattle from the Titans in a midseason trade.
LA.In the NFC championship series to advance to Super Bowl LX. The Rams won 31-27.See the picture above of the winner's dressing room
