WOODLAND HILLS, Calif. – Puka Nacua’s historic rookie year was, by his own admission, not up to the standard of the Rams’ wide receivers this spring.

Of course, it wasn’t just the statistical performance that ensured Cooper Kupp set the bar high in the 2021 season that saw him win the Triple Crown, but also the work ethic and football IQ that remain cornerstones of his approach.

Therefore, Nacua made sure to spend his offseason moving closer to that goal.

He trained with Kupp at Kupp’s home. And he made it a point to look at the big picture when it comes to offense.

“I’ve mentioned it a lot, I love being part of the run game and being part of the box is something that develops so quickly every time we’re in there,” Nacua said Thursday. “We have new guys. We have Jonah Jackson. We have new guys like Steve (Avila) making calls and figuring out who’s calling what, talking to Colby Parkinson and having new communication. DA (Davis Allen) and I feel like draft buddies. We can communicate on our own level, but it’s nice to be back in because everyone communicates in a different way, even being back out there with Coop (Kupp) and seeing some of those aerial moves so Matthew (Stafford) can see me. When you’re out of the game, all those little things that you take for granted come back in the big picture, like, man, I’ve got to get that every time.”

The workouts with Kupp went beyond strength and conditioning. Nacua said he also learned from Kupp the intricacies of the Rams’ quick play routes, as well as “talking, understanding, leverage and then just timing.”

“It comes down to skill and then timing to increase the strides and get the full length,” Nacua explained. “There are going to be moments where it feels tight and you have to shorten your strides to get through the defender’s face. Not necessarily running different routes, but being able to fine-tune some of the things we do all the time.”

Kupp was able to observe this fine-tuning on the practice field over the course of the spring and summer.

“I think what he’s talking about … anybody could look back on 2021, but I think when you talk to Puka and he looks back on his year, he looks at the plays and says, ‘Man, I just know how much better I can be on this play. How much better I can do it on this route, on this run in this direction. Whatever it is, I can be that much better,’” Kupp said. “I think for him, that’s it. The standard is to see that and be able to improve it now and go out and do it. For him, that’s been his focus and he’s done such a great job of being out here and focusing on the things that maybe were things where last year he said, man, I just wasn’t on top of my ‘Ps and Qs’ on this route or on this concept. He’s done such a better job this year of understanding the intent and just his energy getting in and out of the plays. That’s what he focused on.”

Of course, there is one goal for 2023 that met his expectations and that he wants to achieve: to be in every game.

“I know I have a goal, which is to play in every regular season game,” Nacua said. “I accomplished that my freshman year. I’m very passionate about going out there and being there for my team and for myself on Sundays. That’s a challenge I’m ready for.”