Puka Nacua’s breakout rookie campaign wouldn’t be complete without an interview with Pat McAfee.
The Los Angeles Rams superstar — who is just 29 yards shy of breaking the NFL’s all-time rookie receiving record — joined McAfee’s talk show Tuesday afternoon to discuss playing with a number of future Hall of Famers, moving from Utah to California and more.
“Puka, you’re (expletive) awesome, man,” McAfee told the BYU product. “Your mana is fantastic. ... The NFL is lucky to have you.”
McAfee was quick to express his disbelief over Nacua falling all the way to the fifth round of the 2023 NFL draft.
“Why do you think that people didn’t expect this from you? I assume during that combine and draft process you were wondering and confused about it all because as we watch you play we were wondering and confused by it all as well,” he said.
Nacua explained that he expected to be taken earlier.
“I was doing my combine training with Bryce Young and CJ Stroud, so I was just hanging around these guys that everyone was talking about being the first picks,” he said. “I thought we were all gonna be (drafted) in the same spot, but the Rams believed in me enough and the opportunity has gone crazy.”
McAfee ended the interview visibly impressed with Nacua. “Isn’t that your new favorite player in the NFL?” he asked his team.
“What a great representation for the league,” McAfee’s co-host AJ Hawk answered. “The league should be pushing him everywhere.”
Here are some quotes from Nacua from his time on “The Pat McAfee Show.”
On playing with quarterback Matthew Stafford
“He takes such a strong presence in making sure every ball he throws has a nice, tight spiral. I feel like that’s one of the nicest things as a receiver when you see that thing spinning nice and tight, the ability to track it makes it so easy. He never lets a ball get out of its way that isn’t spinning nice and tight.”
On his relationship with All-Pro receiver Cooper Kupp
“He’s been the biggest help to me from the day I stepped in here. The ability to ask questions and for him to just give all the knowledge he has in his offense and just win routes and understand coverage, he gave everything to me. When I was asking questions, he was taking the time to make sure I understood it in depth and that’s made the game so much easier.”
On the talent around him within the Rams offense
“We got some guys who can make plays all over this field, especially with (Kyren Williams) in the backfield and guys who have been in this offense like Coop (Kupp) and big Hig (tight end Tyler Higbee), they make it easy and understand how to win in this offense. With (Stafford) in the backfield ... and coach (Sean) McVay dialing up all the plays that we got, it does feel like we’re unstoppable.”
On the vibe in the Rams locker room
“My locker mate is big Rob Havenstein. He’s been on the Rams for a long time since they’ve been in St. Louis, so he’s the OG. I walk around trying to be ’lil bro to him.
“The vets in our locker room are super cool, AD (defensive tackle Aaron Donald) is always laughing. The D-line is hilarious because AD just controls that side of the ball and the energy that they have.
“Matthew and Cooper are like the two mastermind geniuses, if they’re not talking ball they’re talking something like, ‘How can we save more water?’ They’re the guys you wanna be around because those conversations are just heightening your skills and your knowledge.”
On living in Los Angeles
“It’s crazy expensive. If I think about with how much my rent costs right now what I would be living like in Utah, I’d be living like a king. I don’t even know what’s LA. Everybody’s always like, ‘I’m in LA too,’ and then they send their location and they’re two hours away and I’m like, ‘There’s no chance you’re in LA.’
“I get like a 20-25 minute drive (to the facility), so I get some free time to play some music, listen to a podcast, get the ‘Joe Rogan Experience’ going. ... I listen to some non-Drake (because) I be listening to Drake pretty much most of the day.”