Cooper Kupp, Von Miller Return to Practice: Will They Play This Week?

Los Angeles Rams Wide Receiver Cooper Kupp and Buffalo Bills edge-rusher Von Miller were both designated to return to practice on Wednesday.

Kupp and Miller both missed the first four games of the 2023 NFL season while on injured reserve (IR) and the physically unable to perform list (PUP), respectively. A lingering hamstring injury has kept Kupp out to start the season, while Miller tore the ACL in his right knee in Week 12 last year. The Rams and Bills now both have a 21-day window to activate their Pro Bowlers to their 53-man roster.

The Bills listed Miller as a limited participant in practice Wednesday. Rams head coach Sean McVay told reporters that Kupp will be limited in his return to practice while reading off his team’s injury report, but then clarified that the wide receiver will actually go through a normal practice. McVay joked afterward that he felt “like Ron Burgundy,” a reference to the comedy Anchorman where Will Ferrell plays a news anchor who reads whatever the prompter says.

Among the other players who began their practice window this week is Indianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor, who was previously on the PUP list with an ankle injury. Colts coach Shane Steichen said Monday that Taylor would return to practice this week. The running back was listed as a full participant on Wednesday.

Kupp, Miller, and Taylor all have a chance to play in Week 5. Here’s a look at how the NFL’s injury rules work and the likelihood of these three players returning this weekend.

Explaining NFL’s 21-Day Injury Window

NFL teams use IR and PUP for similar purposes—to keep players who suffered football-related injuries on the team without them counting toward the 53-man roster. But there are some slight differences in the lists.

The main contrast between the two is in regard to the timing of when a player is placed on each list. Players, like Taylor and Miller, are placed on the PUP list when they are physically unable to perform at the start of training camp. Miller was still rehabbing his knee over the summer, while Taylor cited lingering ankle pain during the Colts’ offseason program. Once a player is activated from the PUP list they cannot be placed on it again that season.

The NFL and the league’s players association recently amended rules pertaining to the reserve/injured list, better known as IR. Starting last season, players were required to miss a minimum of four games once placed on injured reserve. NFL teams can designate up to eight players to return from IR during the season, like the Rams did with Kupp, and any individual player can be designated to return two times, though that would count twice toward the team’s total.

Once a player coming off of IR is cleared to practice, a 21-day window is activated. During that time, the player can practice and participate in team activities without being on the active roster. By the end of that three-week window, the player must either be activated to the 53-man roster or placed on season-ending injured reserve. A player could also be released or traded during this timeframe.

Similarly to players coming off IR, once a PUP player resumes practicing, a team has three weeks to decide to activate him to their roster or shut him down.

Since Miller and Taylor remained on the PUP list after their teams had finalized their 53-man roster at the end of the preseason, they were required to miss at least the first four regular-season games before returning to team activities.

Will Kupp, Miller, or Taylor play this week?

There’s a possibility some of the premier players in the NFL could be back on the field Sunday. Here’s a breakdown of all three players’ chances.

Kupp

Kupp has not played since Week 10 of last season. An ankle injury shut down Kupp’s 2022 season. Then, the 30-year-old wide receiver suffered a hamstring injury on August 1 and has had several setbacks in the months since. Kupp, the former All-Pro and Super Bowl LVI MVP, does not have an official injury designation as of Wednesday afternoon.

“We’ll see how he’s feeling and progress him as the week goes,” McVay said.

Kupp led the NFL in receptions (145), receiving yards (1,947), and receiving touchdowns (16) in 2021 when the Rams won the Super Bowl. The seventh-year pro had 75 receptions for 812 yards and six scores in 2022 before suffering his season-ending ankle injury.

The Rams host the Philadelphia Eagles at 4:05 p.m. ET on Sunday.

Miller

Miller’s status for Sunday seems to be moving in the right direction. The eight-time Pro Bowler and two-time Super Bowl champion does not have an official game status for Week 5. But Miller is very optimistic that he will be on the field when the Bills face the Jaguars in London.

“I don’t know if the fans can expect to see me yet, but if I was a betting man I would say yeah, you can expect to see Von Miller in London,” Miller said Tuesday on his podcast The Von Cast.

The 34-year-old Miller has 123.5 sacks in 161 career NFL games. Miller signed a six-year, $120 million contract with the Bills prior to last season. The linebacker had eight sacks in 11 games before suffering the season-ending injury. Bills coach Sean McDermott said Wednesday that the team will take things “one day at a time” while Miller works his way back.

Despite the bold claim on his podcast, Miller acknowledged he may not be back immediately.

“It’s still not a promise that I play in this game,” Miller said, via the NFL website. “I want to play in this game… So hopefully I look amazing tomorrow. I feel really strongly that I will. That’s just how I think I feel like I will be amazing tomorrow and everybody will give me the green light to go play in the game.”

Taylor

Steichen said “we’ll see” earlier this week when referencing his star running back’s likelihood of playing on Sunday. The 2021 NFL rushing leader has not played since December 17 of last year because of an ankle injury.

Taylor does not have a game status designation as of Wednesday afternoon, but a full participation in practice isn’t a bad sign for Sunday.

“He’s in good shape conditioning-wise,” Steichen said earlier this week. “Obviously putting on the pads and practicing is a different deal. I know it’s been a long time since he’s played football. So we’ll see how practice goes this week, see where he’s at physically from putting the pads on and we’ll go from there.”