The final player selected in round five was Puka Nacua. Before his, the phones of 19 receivers rang.
However, the Rams youngster has immediately distinguished himself as the finest of the group.
Through his first four games, Nacua has more catches (39) and yards (501) than any other rookie in NFL history. When did Nacua first realize he could succeed in the NFL?
After Sunday’s overtime victory in Indianapolis, Nacua spoke with PFT by phone and said, “I think there was a moment during training camp.” “Cooper Kupp, he’s been a great mentor, and there was a time in training camp when I wasn’t practicing at my best, but he came up to me, pulled me aside, and said, ‘Hey Puk, we know what you’re capable of. We’ve witnessed it all. Continue doing it while you are out there.
And I kind of just made a mental note that ‘I believe in you’ came from one of the best in the world. We know what you’re capable of because we’ve seen what you can do. And that simply became a permanent memory in my head. Hey, I belong here, I think. I’m prepared to give everything I have right now.
Puka most certainly belongs. Additionally, the confidence of quarterback Matthew Stafford is helpful. How did he manage to do that?
I had the chance to do so during the summer when our strength coach texted me to say, “Hey, Matthew wants you to come out and throw routes in the morning.” said Nacua. “So it kind of went from there, just making sure I proved to him every day that he could trust me. Regardless of whether you toss that ball blindly or not, I’ll be in the right place at the right time because I know where I should be and where I can win. So I’ve been attempting to do that whenever I’m out there from the beginning of our practice in May until this Friday.
He has behaved in this way. He’ll probably continue acting in that way. Additionally, once Kupp is able to make his 2023 debut, it will be much more difficult for defenders to handle Puka.