Unlikely: Rams star man Nikola Kalinic Announced to leave Immediately;Too much of Tax’s….
The Los Angeles Rams have signed Canadian tight end Nikola Kalinic to a reserve/future contract following their elimination from the NFL playoffs.
The 26-year-old spent the entire 2023 season on the practice roster with the team. He is one of three Canadian players on the Rams alongside offensive lineman Alaric Jackson and outside linebacker Michael Hoecht.
Kalinic was a member of the Indianapolis Colts in 2022, spending the first half of the season on their practice roster. He was promoted to the active roster for the second half of the season, dressing for seven games and recording one kickoff return for 15 yards.
The Toronto native was selected by the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in the second round of the 2019 CFL Draft out of York University. He dressed for 30 games over two seasons with the club and recorded 23 receptions for 192 yards and two touchdowns.
At the 2019 CFL Combine, Kalinic recorded a 4.79-second forty-yard dash, 4.44-second shuttle, 7.44-second three-cone, 30.5-inch vertical, nine-foot, four-inch broad jump, and 10 reps of 225 pounds on the bench press.
The six-foot-four, 245-pounder appeared in 31 games over four seasons (2015-18) at York and caught 38 passes for 416 yards and two touchdowns. He became the first player in school history to be named to the OUA all-star team twice in one season, once on offence and once on special teams.
Kalinic worked out for a number of teams prior to signing with the Colts in January 2022, including the Colts, Packers, Tennessee Titans, New Orleans Saints, Seattle Seahawks, and New York Giants.
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The Los Angeles Rams season came to an end in wild fashion losing to the Detroit Lions 24-23. Sean McVay had a few interesting comments after the game and while they did not want their season to end this early, they have a lot to look forward to for next year.
Most notably, there super star rookie receiver Puka Nacua. He continued his record breaking regular season by having the best rookie playoff game at the position ever. Ncua caught 9 passes for 181 yards breaking the record for most receiving yards in a playoff game by a rookie. It is safe to say that Nacua had the best rookie season ever for a receiver and he is just getting started.
Puka has been spectacular with quarterback Matthew Staffod throwing him the ball and because of injuries to Cooper Kupp, Puka was the number one receiver for the Rams the whole season, and clearly the number one in this playoff game. The lights were not too bright for Puka in the playoffs and that is perhaps the best thing the Rams can take away from this playoff loss.
Sean McVay must be incredibly happy with his two rookies on offense Puka and Kyren Williams. Specifically for Puka though, this was not just a great rookie year from him but the best ever. He looked like a veteran in his understanding of the game and his expertise on how the quarterback thinks.
He was getting open against the best defenses in the league, and his route running and hands are clearly top notch. There is not reason that Puka will not continue to be amazing in McVay’s offense for many years to come. Puka finished the year with 105 catches for 1,486 yards, and 6 touchdowns.
McVay knows that he has something special with Puka and he could only praise the Rookie after the loss saying“He’s really special,” McVay said to ESPN’s Sarah Barshop. “But the best part about him is, he doesn’t worry about those things. He worries about just being a great teammate, continuing to improve his game. [I] sure love this team. And he’s one of those guys that you really love.”
Sadly for Los Angeles and Nacua, there season is now over, and they will look to make a few moves this off season to put them in a better position for next season. I can’t wait to see a healthy Cooper Kupp and Puka playing together all next season. When they are healthy they might be the best duo in the league. As for Puka, he should be incredibly happy with his first season in the NFL, and now that he knows he can take over the league, the sky is the limit for his future.
