Cooper Kupp’s return to the Los Angeles Rams meant that someone in the offense was going to see their role drastically change, and that player was Van Jefferson in Week 5. Following the loss against the Philadelphia Eagles, Sean McVay discussed why Jefferson received only two offensive snaps for the Rams on Sunday.
“It was a really unique game because you look at it, there was eight total possessions on each side,” McVay said Monday. “There were six possessions really in the initial parts of the game, especially offensively where you’re talking about 45 snaps with a handful of minutes left in the game where we were in like two-minute mode. You start off the game, you have a 14-play touchdown drive, then you have a six play second drive where we end up missing on that third down, and then you have a six-play touchdown drive in two minute, and then you’re into the second half and you really have three more possessions. You get Cooper back in the mix and there were just fewer opportunities. Based on how the game unfolded, that was kind of how it went down. If you had asked me before, did I anticipate him playing that few snaps, I would’ve not said that but that was kind of how it unfolded.”
Buy Rams TicketsEntering the matchup versus the Eagles, it was known that one of the Rams’ receivers was going to see fewer snaps with Kupp back on the field. Rookie Puka Nacua has been fantastic through the first five weeks, and Tutu Atwell has emerged as a valuable weapon, making Jefferson expendable in the offense.
Even before Kupp made his season debut on Sunday, Jefferson had only eight receptions for 108 yards on 15 targets in the first four games. The former second-round pick failed to record a target on his two snaps against the Eagles, marking the first time he hasn’t had a target since Week 8 of last season.
At the moment, Jefferson is clearly the No. 4 receiver on the depth chart behind Kupp, Nacua, and Atwell. While McVay said he didn’t plan on having Jefferson play only two snaps in Week 5, it’s hard to expect his playing time to improve drastically unless one of the starters suffers an injury.
