The Los Angeles Rams (5-5) will host the red hot Philadelphia Eagles (8-2) on Sunday Night Football at SoFi Stadium this week. The Rams need revenge after their 23-14 loss at home last season to the Eagles. Young star receiver Puka Nacua is ready for his second time facing this specific opponent.
In the Week 5 loss last season, Nacua went off for 71 receiving yards on seven catches and one touchdown. He completely gashed a struggling Eagles defense that has turned a signifcant corner this year and has turned into the second-best pass defense in the NFL.
Nacua was asked about last year's matchup and focused more on the team's performance as a whole over his first two seasons in the league. The important of execution against good teams such as the Eagles is paramount.
“I think that the positive note that we took away from last year and the losses that we have this year
is that it's not something that we're not capable of doing," Nacua said. "It's the execution of coming down with the contested catch, blocking the right guy in the run assignment, in close yardage football being able to win the line of scrimmage and stuff like that. It's not some exotic look that the defense has given us that we're not able to diagnose or dissect. It's a confidence feeling in us in being like man, the challenge is accepted and we're ready to make those plays. It feels exciting.”
Nacua will battle a few new faces this season that were not on the Eagles' defense a year ago. Rookie cornerbacks Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean will guard Nacua for a majority of the contest. They have succeeded to this point, but Nacua could be the one to expose them.
“I guess that the last couple games they [Mitchell & DeJean] look like they've been moving well," Nacua said. "The secondary group is moving in sync. They're playing some confident football and then they're playing complimentary football as a whole team right now. Watching the tape, I feel like they got some good veteran guys in there who know how to direct the flow and make sure everybody's in the right spots. I think we got some good veterans too. We got some good stuff always on our offense, so it’s going to be a good matchup.”
Safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson is another secondary defender that Nacua did not face on the Eagles, but did play against him in the NFC Wild Card game last season when Gardner-Johnson was in his singular year with the Detroit Lions. Nacua found success against him all day long even in the loss.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/nfl/rams/ as Rams Superstar Speaks His Mind About Last Year's Eagles Matchup.