Los Angeles Rams wide receiver and punt returner Pharoh Cooper is out indefinitely with an ankle injury, the team announced today. The team will also be without wide receiver Michael Thomas for a few weeks due to a groin injury. Both men suffered injuries in the Monday night victory in Oakland.
“He’s just got some loose fragments in there. It’s a pretty serious ankle sprain is probably the best way I can put it,” head coach Sean McVay said on Tuesday. “However you cut it, with just the type of player that he is and just the specific position that he plays, it’s going to limit him for at least a few weeks at a minimum.”
Cooper was a staple of the Rams’ special teams last season, being selected as both a Pro Bowler and a first-team All-Pro for his return work. Thomas was mainly a reserve player for the Rams, but was also the team’s backup return man. Fellow receiver Cooper Kupp filled-in on punt return duties against the Raiders with both men sidelined.
McVay said the team will come to a decision on replacing Cooper in the next day or so, but noted that all options are open. The team may prefer to bring in another specialist rather than have Kupp take on another role. Kupp played in 97% of the team’s offensive snaps in Week 1. Expect the Rams to call up preseason star KhaDarel Hodge from the practice squad to round out the back-end of the receiver depth chart.
The Rams will host the Arizona Cardinals in the team’s home opener on Sunday.
Steve Rebeiro is a staff writer and host of the Butting Heads podcast for Rams Talk. He is an alumni of Marquette University. For more of his opinions, follow him on Twitter here.
