Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay has expressed optimism that wide receiver Cooper Kupp could return from injured reserve in Week 5 against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday, October 8.

The 37-year-old mentioned that Kupp is gradually increasing his workload as he works towards making a comeback.

"He's doing a great job with [Vice President of Sports Medicine and Performance] Reggie [Scott] and his group. But when you're talking about returning to performance and returning to play, those are different things. And we want him to be able to return to performance at the level that he's capable of," McVay said.

The Rams had to navigate the first three games of the 2023 NFL season without their star wide receiver, Cooper Kupp, who was placed on the team's injured reserve list due to a hamstring injury before the start of the season, requiring him to miss at least four games.

These games included a victory in Week 1 against the Seattle Seahawks but were followed by losses in Week 2 against the San Francisco 49ers and Week 3 against the Cincinnati Bengals.

Kupp sustained hamstring injury nearly two months ago

The 30-year-old picked up the hamstring injury on August 1 during team practice.

However, McVay informed reporters on August 31 that the Super Bowl LVI MVP experienced a setback in his recovery.

In early September, the head coach also disclosed that Kupp met with doctors in Minnesota to gain further clarity on the extent of his hamstring injury.