The true measure of a participant’s greatness is that this:
When everybody from the opposing defensive gamers to the followers within the stadium to the distributors promoting beer and hotdogs to the parking attendants know the ball goes to him and nonetheless nobody can do something to cease him.
Cooper Kupp was saved comparatively quiet by the Cincinnati protection for 3 ¹/₂ quarters in Tremendous Bowl 2022 Sunday evening at SoFi Stadium, however when the Rams receiver was wanted most he took over the sport.
That is the core definition of the letters M-V-P — Most Invaluable Participant.
There have been a number of the explanation why the Rams overcame the Bengals 23-20 to win the second Tremendous Bowl in franchise historical past.
Their all-world defensive lineman Aaron Donald, keen his option to a primary Tremendous Bowl ring after years of private excellence, clinched the victory with one closing harassment of Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow.
Their quarterback Matthew Stafford, for whom the Rams mortgaged the current and future to amass in an offseason commerce as a result of they believed he was the lacking piece to profitable a title, engineered one other game-winning drive.
However in the long run, it was Kupp who was the star. That’s why he was named the MVP. Nobody deserved it extra.
Kupp, who led the NFL in receptions (145), receiving yards (1,947) and receiving touchdowns (16) this season, completed the Tremendous Bowl with eight catches for 92 yards and two touchdowns, together with the sport winner with 1:25 remaining within the recreation.
With 6:13 left and the Rams trailing 20-16, Rams coach Sean McVay had these phrases for Stafford on the sideline: “You and Coop go get this factor achieved.”
They did.
“That’s laborious work, that’s hours collectively,” Stafford mentioned afterward. “Coach saved calling performs for him, saved discovering methods to get him the ball. He made unbelievable performs. That’s what he does.”
Odell Beckham Jr., the star receiver on the opposite aspect of Kupp and who attracts protection away from him as a result of he’s additionally a giant play ready to occur, was misplaced for the sport with a knee harm suffered within the second quarter. That enabled Cincinnati to place half of its protection on Kupp and it nonetheless didn’t matter.
No one can cowl Kupp, who caught 4 passes for 40 yards on the game-winning drive, however as he has all season he was about a lot greater than merely catching passes.
It was Kupp’s 7-yard achieve on a jet sweep on fourth-and-1 from the Rams personal 30-yard line trailing 20-16 with 5 minutes remaining that saved the dream alive. It was his solely rush of the sport and it saved the Rams’ season.
If that first down isn’t transformed the sport is over, the Bengals are Tremendous Bowl winners for the primary time in franchise historical past, McVay is 0-2 within the huge recreation and we by no means see the remainder of Kupp’s heroics on this memorable evening.
On the game-winner — a 1-yard Stafford back-shoulder move to Kupp — he turned former Giants cornerback Eli Apple round on the correct aspect of the tip zone and secured the ball, the victory and MVP honors.
“Odell went down and Coop made some unbelievable performs on that final drive,” Stafford mentioned. “On that final play, I used to be so comfortable they have been taking part in man [coverage], I used to be going to throw the ball to my man and he made an important play.”
Kupp was in his second yr with the Rams in 2018 however missed the Tremendous Bowl following that season due to an harm, left to observe helplessly in road garments on the sideline because the Rams failed to provide a single landing in a 13-3 loss to the Patriots.
It was that evening when he had a non secular second and noticed his future, noticed Sunday evening.
“In 2019, once we walked off the sector after shedding to the Patriots, I don’t know what it was however I had this imaginative and prescient that God revealed to me that we have been going to be part of that once more, we have been going to win it and in some way I used to be going to stroll off subject as MVP of that recreation,” Kupp mentioned. “As I walked off subject and I rotated earlier than I acquired to the tunnel, it hit me — it was a transparent as I can see you guys [reporters] right here proper now. Fairly unbelievable.’’
Simply one other unbelievable chapter to a narrative ripped straight from a Hollywood film script that started with taking part in his faculty ball at obscure Japanese Washington to turning into a third-round draft decide in 2017 to turning into Tremendous Bowl MVP.
After it was throughout, Kupp was so humbled he was close to tears.
“I don’t really feel deserving of this,” he mentioned when handed the MVP hardware. “I’m so grateful.”
Not as grateful as they're for him.
MVP.
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