Philadelphia Eagles Spoil Cooper Kupp's Return for Los Angeles Rams

The return of star receiver Cooper Kupp wasn't enough to lift the Los Angeles Rams to victory over the Philadelphia Eagles.

It had been 336 days since the last time the Los Angeles Rams had quarterback Matthew Stafford and Cooper Kupp play together. That Stafford-Kupp drought ended on Sunday as the latter made his return from a hamstring injury that he suffered early into training camp and sidelined him for the first four games of the season. 

However, Sunday didn't end happily as the Philadelphia Eagles managed to play spoilers, walking out of SoFi Stadium with a 23-14 win.

As you can imagine, with the prolonged absence of Kupp, the expectations rose in the leadup to Sunday's game versus the Eagles. ... And not only did the Super Bowl-winning duo pick up where they left off, they exceeded expectations. 

It didn't take long for the Rams to reinstall Kupp as their No. 1 playmaker, as Stafford looked his way six times on the opening drive, connecting on five of those to the tune of 56 yards before Stafford found TuTu Atwell for a three-yard touchdown.

Oct 8, 2023; Inglewood, California, USA; Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Cooper Kupp (10) runs for a first down before he is stopped by Philadelphia Eagles cornerback Darius Slay (2) in the first half at SoFi Stadium / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

Then, after working the middle of the field as a playmaker in the short to intermediate passing game on the first drive, Kupp showed that despite being sidelined for weeks with a hamstring injury, he can still be a deep threat, reeling in a 39-yard pass from Stafford. 

While Kupp went on to finish the loss with eight receptions for 118 yards, it didn't mean the standout rookie receiver Puka Nacua wasn't kept busy. As coach Sean McVay promised in the leadup to Sunday, Nacua remained a feature in the offense, finishing second on the team in receiving with 71 yards and a touchdown on seven receptions. 

Yet, even with the standout performances from their new receiving duo, the Rams didn't have enough to hand the Eagles their first defeat of the season.