Rams receiver Pharoh Cooper became an All-Pro and a Pro Bowler in 2017 as a kick returner. On Tuesday, the Rams kicker Cooper to the curb.
“It was a tough decision,” coach Sean McVay told reporters on Wednesday. “So much respect for what Pharoh has done here. He was a Pro Bowl player and really, as a returner in both kick and punt return last year. Was really just impressed with the way that he’s handled himself coming back from the injury. It was really more just a numbers thing than anything else when you figure, how do you get your 46[-man roster] up. With us having two of our three running backs banged up right now, we felt like that was a position of need and that was kind of the decision that went into it. But it wasn’t anything that he didn’t do. Pharoh couldn’t have handled it in a more class manner. He’s a great competitor and I wish him nothing but the best.”
Cooper ended up being cut when the Rams signed running back C.J. Anderson. And the Cardinals, who play the Rams this weekend, pounced on Cooper. Possibly for the purposes of picking his brain.
“It happens from week-to-week in the NFL,” passing game coordinator Shane Waldron told reporters. “You don’t want to dive too much into that, they’ve got a week to prepare just like we do and I think you can start chasing some ghosts in that regard. We’ll maintain our offensive approach. Love Pharoh as a guy, love him as a competitor, as a player and wish him nothing but the best. As far as when you get into some of those tactical approaches, there’s some teams in this league where those signals or some of those things have been the same for 15 years moving forward. Some of those things, I think, are overvalued. I think you got to go out there and play football and execute at a high level and if you start worrying too much about hand signals or code words, stuff like that, you’re not allowing yourself to play fast. We still feel that we can operate as we’ve been operating. Like I said, wish nothing but the best for Pharoh. Love him as a competitor and a person.”
McVay may feel differently if Cooper is able to help the Cardinals beat the Rams, especially since one more loss could rob the Rams of their first-round playoff bye.
