Rams' Puka Nacua discusses historic first season, what makes Matthew Stafford special and toughest DB he faced
INGLEWOOD, CA - DECEMBER 21: Puka Nacua #17 of the Los Angeles Rams celebrates after a run during an NFL game against the New Orleans Saints at SoFi Stadium on December 21, 2023 in Inglewood, California.
It didn't take long for Los Angeles Rams wideout Puka Nacua to establish himself as one of the premier pass catchers in the NFL. In his first two professional games, the fifth-round pick out of BYU caught 25 passes for a whopping 266 yards -- and it was just a sign of things to come.
Nacua set rookie records for receptions (105) and receiving yards (1,486) to go along with six receiving touchdowns, while the Rams made the playoffs as a wild card. In that postseason loss to the Detroit Lions, Nacua caught nine passes for 181 yards and a touchdown, setting the NFL record for most receiving yards recorded by a rookie in a playoff game. Nacua finished his first season ranked ninth in receptions, fourth in yards and sixth in receiving yards per game, which earned him Second Team All-Pro honors, as well as a Pro Bowl appearance.
This week, Nacua spoke with CBS Sports about his historic rookie campaign, and how he's preparing for Year 2.
CBS Sports: You probably had the best campaign for any rookie wideout ever. Did you surprise yourself a little bit with how you dominated out of the gate?
Nacua: "I wouldn't use the word surprised, but it definitely did feel natural. With the media stuff that had come after, but I still remember that first time out in Seattle Week 1 and just feeling like I was in a flow state. My first target in the NFL was a drop, but I just remember after that moment, me and Matthew (Stafford) kind of looking at each other and feeling like everything was still going to be alright. I had made the mistake to start, and everything else went so smoothly after that. So it was amazing."
Tell me about Matthew Stafford, he seems like one of the most underrated quarterbacks in the league. What makes him so special?
"The arm talent he has I think is second to none, and then his toughness at the quarterback position is something that you don't always get from the quarterbacks. There's nobody I'd rather have leading our offense than Matthew Stafford. He's tough as nails, he can put the ball anywhere he wants. For being a veteran guy, he's well aware of what the young bucks are doing and he's so smart and witty, but he also takes the time to care and pour into his other teammates. So it's really fun to have a leader like that, especially when your quarterbacks is as tough as nails, you feel like you can do anything."
How did having someone like Sean McVay make your transition to the next level easier?
"Coach McVay made it feel almost too easy. His level of communication and understanding of the game of football is the best I've been around. I mean I've only been in the league for one year, but coach, the level of understanding he has of each player and the want for you to succeed, it really comes out when he's coaching and it makes playing the game of football so fun."
Who do you think was the toughest defensive back you faced in your rookie season?
"The game against the Cowboys, Stephon Gilmore was a tough one. Somebody who I watched growing up and you see him play in the Super Bowls and stuff like that, and you're like, man, this is an opportunity for me to get to play against one of the best. It wasn't my best performance, but it was something I was able to learn from and I'm super excited for that matchup whenever it comes again."
What's something you picked up from the veteran Cooper Kupp that really helped you in your game?
"I think patience. Patience was one of the big things. I felt like the game was moving so much faster than it was in college, but then also being a rookie you just feel like there's so many different things flying at you, so much information, so many new things that are happening for the first time. And now I gotta catch this 100-mph fast ball from Matthew every time where you're like 'Holy cow.' Your mind is all over the place, and Coop is such a calm and centered guy, so the patience that he's able to have in the route-running and understanding the offense and seeing the defense was something I tried to continually add into my game because it requires such a level of calmness and understanding of yourself to have that true patience and understanding of what's going on in the game."
How has your preparation changed entering Year 2?
"Being more focused on my body parts that I feel like needed work. We're always training obviously for football and some of the basic strength care that comes from standard olympic lifting, and then just the nuances of my body and the things that have changed either from previous injuries or stuff that I've learned from this past season. Being really specific in certain areas of training."
Nacua spoke to CBS Sports after partnering with Team Toyota.
"I've been lucky enough to partner up with Team Toyota. We got the new wave of the NFL coming in to collaborate with Toyota and we got some fun content coming out. We got Kyle Hamilton out there, who I think is one of the best safeties in the league. You don't see a lot of guys with that size. We also got the young buck Christian Gonzalez, who also has great size. We got Brock Purdy out there in The Bay, and we got Michael Pittman Jr. -- a receiver who I feel like is very similar to me, and he's been doing it for a while. Then we got Eli Manning running the show, so we got a great little squad and Toyota has been really helpful in putting us all together and I can't wait for all the stuff we're getting ready to do this year."