Puka Nacua is looking forward to Cooper Kupp joining him for a full, injury-free season in 2024.
While Kupp is preparing to commence his eighth season in the NFL, Nacua is just coming off a remarkable rookie season.
The LA Rams dynamic receiving duo features the MVP of Super Bowl LVI and the 2021 Offensive Player of the Year (Cupp) and holder of the NFL records for the most receiving yards and the most receptions by a rookie (Nacua).
Puka Nacua Says Cooper Kupp Is Fully Healthy
Josh Alper of NBC Sports reported on April 4, 2024 about remarks Nacua made indicating the young wide receiver’s belief that Kupp is on track to “return to the level of performance that made him the offensive player of the year in 2021.” Nacua said:
“I’ve been training with Coop so it’s been good. He’s on a revenge tour. He’s been able to get a healthy offseason and stuff so he’s back at it[.]”
Kupp was hampered by injuries in 2022 and 2023, which limited his playing time. He suffered an ankle injury in 2022, which caused him to miss eight games that season. Then, a hamstring injury caused him to miss the first four games of the 2023 season.
Nacua believes the injury problems are behind Kupp now.
The Cold Wire notes:
“Needless to say, that’s terrible news for the rest of the league.
“When healthy, [Matthew] Stafford has proven to be one of the most dominant and explosive passers in the game, and he’s been partly responsible for two of the greatest wide receiver seasons in NFL history [Calvin Johnson in 2012 and Kupp in 2021] — three if you add Nacua’s rookie campaign.
“A one-two punch of Puka Nacua and Cooper Kupp, with Stafford slinging the pigskin down the field, should help the Rams have one of the most proficient passing games in the league, especially with an innovative mind like Sean McVay’s leading the way.”
The Combination of Nacua and Kupp, Teaming Up with Matthew Stafford, Looks to Be Formidable
Drafted in the fifth round of the 2023 NFL Draft, Nacua turned out to be the quintessential diamond in the rough. Not only did he break the rookie record for most pass receptions and most receiving yards, but also he turned in another record-breaking performance in the Rams’ hard-fought playoff loss to the ascendant Detroit Lions.
Nacua’s performance in 2023 was so astounding that, in an ESPN re-do of the 2023 Draft, he is taken fourth overall in the entire draft, behind only quarterbacks C.J. Stroud and Anthony Richardson and defensive end Will Anderson, Jr.
Of course, Kupp’s bona fides as a great NFL receiver have long been established. In 2022, his fellow NFL players voted him the fourth-best player in the entire league, behind only Tom Brady, Aaron Donald, and Aaron Rodgers.
As aptly observed by NBC Sports:
“Nacua’s emergence may keep Kupp from putting up the kind of numbers he put up in his last full season, but the prospect of having both wideouts in top form is one that should make for some good feelings around the Rams.”
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