Rams’ Puka Nacua breaks NFL rookie records for yards, catches،
SANTA CLARA, Calif. – With his third reception Sunday against the San Francisco 49ers, Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua broke a 63-year-old record for most receiving yards by a rookie in history of the NFL.
Nacua passed Bill Groman, who had 1,473 receiving yards in a 14-game season in 1960. On the next play, Nacua caught his 105th pass, giving him the rookie record for receptions in a season.
“It will say Puka Nacua [in the record books]but I wish it could tell everyone,” Nacua said. “The 11 guys there because it really takes all 11. They should all feel this reward as much as I do because I couldn't do without the guys in the group. in front and obviously [quarterbacks] Matthew [Stafford] and Carson [Wentz] over there. Everyone was involved – it was sweet to feel like myself, but everyone's fun made it even sweeter. »
The catch came in the third quarter after Nacua tied the record for the first time with a 19-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Wentz on the Rams' first drive of the game. That TD catch gave the receiver 1,473 yards to tie Gorman's record. Nacua finished with four catches for 41 yards in the Rams' 21-20 victory.
The record came in a game in which the Rams held off numerous starters, including Stafford, receiver Cooper Kupp and running back Kyren Williams. Nacua probably would have been on this list if he hadn't entered the game just 29 yards short of breaking Groman's record.
The Rams had three more drives in the first half, but the 49ers held Nacua without a catch to end the half. After the game, coach Sean McVay said the Rams' difficulty getting Nacua the ball the rest of the first half was like “the football gods telling me, 'Man, this isn't That's not how you do it.'
I believed in the integrity of the game and it was one of those deals where you want to give him an opportunity to get it because of what he put himself in position for, but when you start to going outside of the operational framework like you normally would, it was almost like they looked and said, “Hey, you know what? You know better,” McVay said. “And then I thought first drive where [offensive coordinator] Mike [LaFleur] did a good job mixing things up, the ball came naturally to him.
“And then whoever was able to get the last catch record was a hell of a catch on a screen where he immediately went vertical. But I was really happy with Carson. And credit to the Niners – they had understood what it was. “We were trying to do it, especially at the end of the half. And they've done a good job of preventing that. “
Kyle Shanahan said the 49ers were “doing everything possible to keep them from getting 1 more yard or one more completion to Puka so they could play him all game.” Asked if he would be angry if another team did that to him, Shanahan said, “No, I expect it.”
The coach said he wasn't trying to tire Nacua out, but added with a smile, “I just wanted them to get through the stress we're going through.”
“You don’t want to hurt anyone,” Shanahan said. “They're not the most fun games for us. We have to do it but I don't think we'll talk about it much next week.
