There was no bigger steal in the NFL draft this year than Puka Nacua. As a fifth-round pick, he’s already turned in an 1,100-yard season and still has four games remaining, putting him in striking distance of the single-season rookie receiving record.
The Rams selected him with the third of their three fifth-round picks, the final selection in Round 5 at No. 177 overall. Though they clearly liked Nacua more than the other 31 teams, they very easily could’ve missed out on the rookie sensation.
Needless to say, Sean McVay wouldn’t have been a very happy camper if that happened. He joked on Friday that he might’ve choked out Les Snead if the Rams didn’t draft Nacua when they had.
“When it was getting down to it, I might’ve choked Les out if we had missed out on Puka when we were waiting so long to be able to take him,” McVay said with a smile. “But he’s a stud and we’re really grateful to have him.”
Nacua was injured often in college, which McVay admits was “maybe a reason he was available when he was” in the fifth round. Had Nacua put together a healthy career in college, he might’ve gone much sooner because there was a lot to like about his game.
“The toughness, the aggressive hands, just the competitor,” McVay said. “And you could see with a lot of the different things he was asked to do, the football acumen and IQ, you had to guess was really high before you even talked to him based on the versatility of his game.”
The Rams didn’t let that affect their view of him too much, though, and it’s worked out perfectly for both the team and the player. But even they didn’t expect him to be this good this quickly.
“If we were to say we knew he’d be this good, we would not have waited as long as we did,” McVay said.