Puka Nacua didn’t join the Rams as a first or second-round pick. He wasn’t close to being the first player they selected this year. They picked seven players before him, but he’s done everything possible to make an impact on this team already.
That includes infiltrating morning film sessions with Cooper Kupp and Matthew Stafford.
In their first season together, Kupp and Stafford would watch film and eat breakfast together every morning, which is what helped them develop chemistry so quickly in 2021. The result was a record-breaking season for Kupp and a Super Bowl ring for the Rams as a team.
Now, Nacua is hoping to follow in Kupp’s footsteps as a member of the so-called “Breakfast Club” in the Rams’ building. He’s joined Kupp and Stafford when they watch film, taking it all in as the masters break down plays and prepare for the upcoming game.
“I’m kind of following Coop, like, ‘Hey, when do you guys come in? Hey, Coop, can I watch with you guys?’” Nacua said in a feature story at The Athletic. “The first couple of meetings, I’m like a fly on the wall. Nothing is really being said to me, they’re just like, watching the tape (and) talking to each other. Then they’re like, ‘Oh, Puka, you’re in on this rep? This is what we want you to do.’ And I’m like, ‘Oh, you’re talking to me?’ I’m so focused the whole time! My ears perk up and I’m like, ‘He’s talking to me now.’”
With Kupp sidelined, Nacua has essentially taken his place as the slot receiver. He’s running many of the same routes and playing a similar style of offense as Kupp does, turning short and intermediate passes into first downs.
As well as Nacua is playing, no one could’ve predicted that he’d have 25 catches and 266 yards after two games. A fifth-round rookie leading the NFL in receptions and ranking second in yards? That’s borderline unheard of.
But it’s all part of his work ethic and the time he’s spending in the Rams’ building. Even Stafford said last week that his chemistry with Nacua developed early on because they worked together so much.
“It didn’t really start in training camp. It started the second he got drafted here and was in OTAs,” Stafford told reporters last week. “I spent a bunch of time in OTAs working with him. Spent time in between OTAs and training camp throwing to him. Spent a bunch of time during training camp, just reps. And his understanding of the game comes really natural to him.”
The more time Nacua spends with Stafford and Kupp, the better off he’ll be. And it’s already showing in a big way.
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