Would Kupp's record be legit if he had surpassed Megatron in game 17?
(Photo by Kyusung Gong / Associated Press via latimes)
After a long hiatus, I am finally back baby! The first semester of Graduate school was no joke and kicked my ass. However, I’m back with a vengeance as a ton has gone down in the sports world I want to cover. First order of business: would Kupp’s record have been legit if he surpassed Megatron in the 17th game? Let’s discuss.
I want to begin by applauding Cooper Kupp’s ability and talent for almost breaking Calvin “Megatron” Johnson’s single-season receiving yard record, however, I would not accept it as the ‘true’ record.
I know that sounds harsh and haughty, but hear me out.
Kupp caught 145 passes for 1,947 yards and 16 touchdowns for the Rams in the 2021 regular season and was obviously Matthew Stafford’s go-to guy all year.
Kupp put up, dare I say, MVP numbers! I believe he’s worthy of a few MVP votes and is one of the dark horses that can actually win the whole thing, besides Josh Allen. We all know the MVP is going to Aaron Rodgers, but it’s fun to speculate.
After falling short of Megatron’s record of 1,964 yards in a year by less than twenty yards, (in a 17 game schedule) I feel like it lacks a sense of bravado. In no way shape fashion or form am I bashing Kupp’s ability on the field, but this 17-game schedule has everything all screwed up.
I know records are meant to be broken. The only reason why this stat line is a big deal this year is because Roger Goodell and the NFL decided to add another week to the season. They extended a 16-game schedule, which was perfectly normal in comparison to a 17-game odyssey.
Of course, the only reason they did this was for the money. More games = more time on TV = more revenue; it’s simple. Overall, I find the idea of expanding the schedule utterly stupid, while not entirely new.
Most of our modern records that we have come to love have been established in the 16 game season, whether it was Joe Montana’s touchdowns in the late 1980s or Tom Brady’s hall-of-fame-like season in 2007. Football fans everywhere have been familiar with this format ever since the addition of 2-games to the 1978 14-game season, giving us the 16-game schedule we all know and love… or loved.
While there is precedent for the NFL to add games, I have a hard time believing in accepting that the league made this decision for the good of the game. Goodell essentially stated they would be adding another game to help “grow the game of football across the world,” but true fans saw through those words. Again, this was all about money.
Anyway, let’s loop back around to Kupp. As I mentioned earlier, Kupp put up an MVP caliber season, but just fell short of the record.
I guess you could call me a traditionalist or a guy stuck in the past, but I would not have accepted that as the new record. The NFL did this solely for monetary gain and this applies to other sports as well. For example, I still believe Hank Aaron is the Home Run king considering Barry Bonds roided his way to the top.
Anyways, even Cooper Kupp himself believes that if he did break the record, it would not be the same.
Kupp stated that breaking Megatron’s record, “wouldn’t hold the same weight to me as it does for guys that have done that in a 16-game season.” Said by the 2021 GOAT himself.
While this debate of whether the 17-game season will break more records or not will ravage sports communities for years to come, we can all enjoy what a monster year Kupp had:
Justin Jefferson might be that guy next year, but that’s a conversation for another day.