An influx of young Utah ties is taking the NFL by storm. Here are 7 Utah-related storylines to follow this season

There is a lot of young talent in the NFL right now that can trace its playing roots back through the state of Utah.
From Puka Nacua to Penei Sewell, and from Jordan Love to Dalton Kincaid, as well as rookies like Jonah Elliss and Kingsley Suamataia, the Beehive State is developing football talent that is being showcased at the highest levels of the sport.
Going into the 2024 season, which starts Thursday with a showdown between the Kansas City Chiefs and Baltimore Ravens, there is nearly enough Utah talent to fill an entire NFL roster heading into the year.
Currently, there are more than 50 Utah ties on NFL active rosters, with another dozen-plus on practice squads.
What are the top names and storylines to watch for in the 2024 season?
Former BYU and Orem High star Puka Nacua took the NFL by storm last season, setting league rookie records after being a fifth-round draft selection.
He broke the NFL’s rookie marks for receptions (105) and receiving yards (1,486), was named a Pro Bowler and second-team All-Pro, and became one of the most marketable young names in the game, all while helping the Los Angeles Rams make a return to the playoffs.
So, what can Nacua do in his second NFL season? Even if there’s some regression from those gaudy numbers, can he still be one of the top wide receivers in the league?
The 23-year-old will again be catching passes from veteran Matthew Stafford and lining up alongside another All-Pro receiver, Cooper Kupp, as the Rams try to advance further in the playoffs — last year, Los Angeles fell to Detroit by 1 point in the wild-card round.
Nacua missed much of training camp with a knee injury, but is on track to be ready for Week 1, according to ESPN, when the Rams play on the road at the Lions.
“Did we think he’d come in and have 105 catches and almost 1,500 yards? I’d say that would be exceeding my expectations,” Rams coach Sean McVay said about Nacua in July on “The Athletic Football Show” podcast, as the Deseret News previously reported.
“But there was a toughness. There was a vision for him, and to the guy’s credit, man, he’s a mentally, physically tough guy. He’s fearless, he’s brought a physicality to our offense.”
Jordan Love, the former Utah State standout, is now playing on the NFL’s richest contract — this offseason, he signed a four-year, $220 million contract extension that will pay him $55 million annually on average and is tied for the highest-paid QB contract in league history.
That comes after he finished his first season as a starter as one of the league’s hottest quarterbacks.
Love, who waited three years to get his chance to take over the Green Bay Packers offense while backing up Aaron Rodgers, got off to a bit of a slow start last season, but by year’s end, he had thrown for 4,159 yards and 32 touchdowns to just 11 interceptions.
He then led the Packers, as the No. 7 and final NFC seed, to a wild-card round win over Dallas in the playoffs before Green Bay fell agonizingly short of San Francisco in the divisional round.
Over the final eight weeks of the regular season, Love threw for 2,150 yards, 18 touchdowns and only one interception while completing 70.2% of his passes.
If the 25-year-old can perform more at the level of play he showed in the second half of last season, the Packers signal caller will be among the elite quarterbacks in the league.
So, what’s in store for his second season as a starter?
“Last year there was a lot of question marks with everybody on our team,” Love said last week, per Bleacher Report. “We had a lot of young players and guys trying to prove themselves. Now, guys kind of made names for themselves and teams know what we are about. Our mindset is definitely elevated as a team in the locker room.”
There is a theme developing here: Utah ties having the chance to make some noise in their second season in the league or as a starter.
Dalton Kincaid, the former Utah star who is now a starting tight end for the Buffalo Bills, also fits that mold.
As a rookie last year, he made a sizable impact with the Bills while showcasing an undeniable on-field chemistry with quarterback Josh Allen, catching 73 passes for 673 yards and two touchdowns.
In the final two weeks of the regular season, the 24-year-old Kincaid had a pair of 80-yard receiving games and followed that up by catching eight passes for 104 yards and a touchdown during two playoff games.
His 80.2% catch rate on 91 targets during the regular season was 20th in the league, per StatMuse, and fourth among tight ends, though it was second among tight ends with 50 or more receptions.
Some NFL executives told ESPN earlier this offseason they believe Kincaid is already a top 10 NFL tight end, and there are others who believe that Kincaid will prove he’s a top-five tight end during his sophomore campaign.
ESPN’s Ben Solak called Kincaid the Bills’ X factor for the 2024 season.
“As his trust with Allen grows, expect him to start leading the Bills in targets in more games than he doesn’t, and watch for (offensive coordinator Joe) Brady to scheme around Kincaid’s versatility in alignment and routes to open up other players as well. He’s the skeleton key of this passing attack,” Solak wrote.
In April’s 2024 NFL draft, there were eight Utah ties selected and more than 20 rookies who signed free-agent deals or were invited to minicamps.
After the NFL’s final cutdowns last week, 11 of those rookies survived to make an initial 53-man roster.
Of those, perhaps the most intriguing is former Utah edge rusher Jonah Elliss.
He was a third-round draft pick by the Denver Broncos and during the preseason, Elliss showed off his ability to make disruptive plays. The 21-year-old helped force an interception in the Broncos’ preseason opener, and then in a victory over Green Bay, Elliss had a strip sack and fumble recovery.
He was named to Pro Football Focus’ preseason all-rookie team as a result.
“I feel like my speed to power is what catches people off guard,” Elliss said, per the team’s website. “They think I’m just a speed rusher. It’s been pretty fun getting going like this.”
One other rookie name of note along these lines: Former East High star Taki Taimani, who played at Washington and Oregon in college, was also named to PFF’s preseason all-rookie team.
He made Minnesota’s initial 53-man roster despite going undrafted in April.
Another rookie with Utah ties, this one on offense, has drawn an important starting role heading into the 2024 season.
Kingsley Suamataia, the former BYU and Orem High standout offensive lineman, is tasked with protecting Patrick Mahomes’ blindside as the Kansas City Chiefs’ starting left tackle.
How will the 21-year-old second-round draft pick handle the role?
He beat out second-year pro Wanya Morris for the starting job, a fact that became clear early in training camp as Suamataia took the bulk of the first-team left tackle snaps and Morris dealt with some injuries.
Now, he will get his first start when the Chiefs host the Ravens on Thursday to open the 2024 season.
“He had a good training camp,” Kansas City coach Andy Reid said Sunday, per NFL.com. “He had a good preseason, but this is going to be a learning experience for him here. This is a good defensive line, and he’s going to — I’m sure there will be some ups and downs as he goes like any young player has. He’s prepared himself, and it’s time to go play now.”
Mahomes, too, has shown confidence in what will be the fourth different opening-day starting left tackle for the talented Chiefs signal caller in his time in Kansas City.
“He’s going to get kind of introduced fast. I’m excited for him to accept the challenge and see where he’s at, but he did a great job in the preseason,” Mahomes said of Suamataia, per NFL.com. “He did a great job in training camp, and I’m excited for him to go out there and accept that next challenge.”
Reid, the former BYU player and grad assistant, has become the face of NFL head coaches in the modern era, and for good reason.
His team has won three Super Bowl titles in the past five seasons, he has led Kansas City to a 128-51 record in his 11 years there and the Chiefs have won their division eight straight years under his leadership.
The Chiefs are also coming off their second straight Super Bowl championship under Reid, after beating San Francisco in overtime during the NFL’s title game last year.
So, can Reid and the Chiefs make history and earn the first three-peat in Super Bowl history?
Kansas City goes into the season as the favorite to win the Super Bowl yet again, according to Las Vegas oddsmakers, and have the experience — from Reid to Mahomes to tight end Travis Kelce and defensive tackle Chris Jones — to make another run.
Reid isn’t entertaining much time talking about the difficulty of a possible three-peat.
“It’s not healthy. It’s a nice goal to put out there. It’s hard to get one,” he told The Athletic this summer.
The aforementioned Reid and Suamataia are where talks begin when it comes to discussing which Utah ties could win a Super Bowl crown during the 2024 season.
Former BYU linebacker Fred Warner and the 49ers will be chasing a title again, after losing to Kansas City in last year’s Super Bowl. It’s the second time Warner and San Francisco were denied a title by the Chiefs.
Penei Sewell, arguably the best young offensive lineman in the league at the age of 23, will chase the Super Bowl with a Detroit Lions team that was foiled by the 49ers in last year’s NFC championship.
Former BYU linebacker Kyle Van Noy, former Utah safety Marcus Williams and the Baltimore Ravens fell to the Chiefs in last year’s AFC championship at home. Will Baltimore have what it takes to reach the Super Bowl this year?
What about Love and the Packers? Or how about Kincaid and the Bills?
Could former Utah cornerback Jaylon Johnson, who’s coming off a breakout season that landed him a lucrative contract, help the Chicago Bears become a dark horse playoff contender?
Time will tell, and one thing’s for certain: There’s likely to be some Utah ties making key plays in the race to the Super Bowl this season.