Cooper Kupp had a season for the ages in 2021, posting the receiving triple crown and ending the year by catching the Super Bowl-winning touchdown and earning Super Bowl MVP honors.
That's not good enough for him to be ahead of Justin Jefferson, however. At least, according to the Vikings' wide receiver.
"Coop is good, but I'll say he's behind me," Jefferson told the Pioneer Press.
Does Kupp feel Jefferson's right? Not quite.
"I would hope he would say that. I think that's the beauty of this game, and I think it speaks to the competitiveness of this league," Kupp said.
If you're not putting yourself as the best and you're not working to be the best, then I'd be concerned about stepping on the field with you if you don't feel like you've prepared to be the best player that you can be.
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"So I respect his opinion, and I can also respectfully disagree."
Previously, Jefferson told Complex he feels the best receiver in the NFL is Davante Adams, but he said he expects that after this year, he'll be the league's No. 1 receiver. He told the Pioneer Press that passing Adams remains the goal, as does a round number that hasn't been touched by any NFL wide receiver.
"Hopefully everything goes right and I can get that 2,000," Jefferson said. "That's my goal."
If Jefferson reaches 2,000 receiving yards in a season, he would certainly have a strong case to be the top receiver in the league.
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But for now, who has a better case for the better receiver heading into the season? The Sporting News takes a look.
Cooper Kupp stats
Kupp has the easiest case to make as the better receiver heading into 2022 based solely on the numbers. He is the reigning AP NFL Offensive Player of the Year after leading the league with 16 touchdowns, 145 receptions and 1,947 yards. Since the merger in 1970, there have only been four receivers win the triple crown.
Here are the previous three triple crown winners:
| Receiver | Year | Team | Stats |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jerry Rice | 1990 | 49ers | 100 rec., 1,502 yards, 13 TDs |
| Sterling Sharpe | 1992 | Packers | 108 rec., 1,461 yards, 13 TDs |
| Steve Smith | 2005 | Panthers | 103 rec., 1,563 yards, 12 TDs |
It wasn't just the standard numbers of Kupp's that shined. ProFootballFocus graded him as the No. 1 receiver. He was tied for the best grade on deep (20-plus yards) passes at 99.9, tied with Jefferson and Brandon Aiyuk at 99.9 for the best receivers on intermediate (10-19 yards) passes and his grade of 95.8 trailed only Adams' 96.6 on short (0-9 yards) passes.
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Kupp also led all qualifying receivers in yards per route run (3.12) and was tied for third in yards after the catch per reception (six).
This also isn't his first standout season. Kupp has four times in five seasons had at least 800 receiving yards and twice exceeded 1,000 yards, with his first time breaking four-digits in 2019 with 1,161 receiving yards.
The triple crown-winning season came in Matthew Stafford's first season in Los Angeles, the first time Kupp has had a different quarterback than Jared Goff throwing him passes. Stafford finished the year third in passing yards (4,886) and second in passing touchdowns (41).
Needless to say, the Stafford-Kupp connection was proven to be one of the league's most dangerous in their first year together.
Justin Jefferson stats
Jefferson's sophomore campaign wasn't as prolific on paper as Kupp's, but it firmly established him as one of the league's best.
Jefferson had a dynamic rookie year in which he caught 88 passes for 1,400 yards with seven touchdowns. The yardage marked a modern rookie-season record that stood for all of one year, when Bengals rookie — and former LSU teammate — Ja'Marr Chase broke it with 1,455 yards.
How did Jefferson follow up that season? Only by catching 108 passes for 1,616 yards with 10 touchdowns. The yardage marked the fourth-most in a second season in the modern era. No receiver has ever had more receiving yards in their first two seasons than Jefferson at 3,016.
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In his career to this point, Jefferson has averaged 15.4 yards per reception. Among receivers with at least 100 receptions over the past two seasons, only Deebo Samuel has more yards per reception, according to Stathead.
And like Kupp, ProFootballFocus is a believer in what he has done on the fields. He ranked third in receiving rating both in 2020 and 2021 — only Adams has a higher average ranking over the past two seasons than Jefferson.
Also like Kupp, Jefferson is dangerous across the field. He ranked ninth in deep receiving grade at 98.3 among qualifying receivers and was tied for first in intermediate range at 99.9.
Maybe the scariest thing about Jefferson: he's only heading into his age 23 season, and has gotten better each year. What does his third season look like? He's hoping it's record-breaking.
"That would be big," Jefferson told the Pioneer Press on the possibility of reaching 2,000 receiving yards. "Just breaking the record my rookie year and then also breaking a record in my third year, that would be crazy for me. That's going to be a goal for me, for sure."
