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Cooper Kupp got 11.3 yards past the Bears’ secondary, tracking technology shows
Posted by Michael David Smith on September 15, 2021, 3:34 PM EDT
Chicago Bears v Los Angeles Rams
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How wide open did Rams wide receiver Cooper Kupp get in the Bears’ secondary on his 56-yard touchdown pass on Sunday night? So wide open that the NFL hadn’t seen anything like it in three years.
The NFL’s Next Gen Stats use tracking devices on every player’s shoulder pads to provide data beyond the ordinary statistics, and one piece of data from Sunday night was that Kupp had 11.3 yards of separation from the nearest defender on his 56-yard touchdown catch, the most separation on a completion more than 40 yards downfield in the last three seasons.
Bears safety Tashaun Gipson said it was just a mental screw-up by the Bears’ secondary that allowed Kupp to get that open.
“It was a brain fart on the secondary, myself included,” Gipson said. “I take ownership on that play. We’ve all got to be on the same page, myself, all of us. But I take ownership on that play.”
The Bears struggled to cover Kupp all day. He finished with a game-high seven catches and 108 yards.
