Rams WR Puka Nacua made noise in the Offensive Rookie of the Year race during Thursday’s win over the Saints. Today we will discuss about Puka Nacua: Highlights| NFL draft| Rookie card| Real name.
Puka Nacua: Highlights| NFL draft| Rookie card| Real name
Mekia “Puka” Nacua (born May 29, 2001) is an American football wide receiver for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Washington and BYU.
Highlights
NFL draft
Puka Nacua is the perfect wide receiver for the Shanahan-style offense prevalent in the league.
However, he is raw. BYU didn’t ask him to run beyond slants, on balls or run down routes – all of which allowed him to use his explosion and speed without much finesse.
On occasion Nacua was asked to run more sophisticated routes, his footwork became disorganized and he did not completely sink and exit those routes with ease. He has the athletic tools to do it; He didn’t seem comfortable or ready to do so.
But as raw as his route running is, he “gets” other parts of the position. Nacua’s strong, stocky frame allows him to win with physicality both on the line and in traffic.
Rookie card
New Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani wore the No. 17 Rams jersey at SoFi Stadium on Thursday night. The $700 million man will wear jersey 17 moving forward with the Dodgers and he received a custom number 17 jersey from the Rams before the game. But Thursday night was about a different No. 17 — Los Angeles Rams breakout rookie wide receiver Puka Nacua.
“He is playing at a very high level at the moment. The game has slowed down for him,” Rams wide receiver Cooper Kupp said of Nacua. “His demeanor, being able to slow him down and do the things he wants to do. He has been playing freely from the beginning and making big plays.
Real name
Puka Nacua’s real first name is Mekia, but he got the nickname “Puka” when he was younger. His name is pronounced “poo-kuh, nuh-koo-uh”. Coming from a Polynesian background, Nacua’s mother and grandmother immigrated to the United States from Western Samoa.