Getty Torry Holt and Isaac Bruce celebrate a touchdown together during a 2002 game against the San Diego Chargers. Bruce told the NFL Network that he believes there's one duo who are pretty close to he and Holt. And the duo plays for his former team.
Isaac Bruce is revered in Rams history for forming one of the most explosive wide receiving duos of all-time with fellow franchise legend Torry Holt.
The two went on to play in two Super Bowls, winning the 2000 game by topping the 100-yard mark against the Tennessee Titans. Career wise, Bruce and Holt are No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, in career receiving yards with the Rams. Before 2017, the Rams struggled finding a receiving duo that were mirror images of Bruce and Holt.
But now, “The Reverend” is a believer the Rams have found their near-equal to him and “Big Game Holt:” Cooper Kupp and Robert Woods.
“I think they’re pretty close,” Bruce said on the NFL Network on Tuesday evening of where Woods and Kupp rank in Rams’ lore.
“I’m learning how to hug with that gold jacket on.” 😂
@IsaacBruce80 joined @RhettNFL on @NFLTotalAccess as he prepares to enter the @ProFootballHOF!
What “The Reverend” Likes About This Rams Pairing
Bruce and Holt were Rams teammates between 1999 to 2007. They spent their Sundays working upfield, separating themselves from cover cornerbacks with their speed and releases and knowing how to attack zone schemes. Bruce sees the similarities between Kupp and Woods.
“Number one, they’re football players, and that’s always where I begin in my evaluation of players,” Bruce said. “They can run after the catch, catch footballs in traffic, make plays. They can get open versus zone and they do a lot of their work at the line of scrimmage. So when I see these two guys and the combination that they have together, very similar to what Torry and I were able to accomplish. And at the same time, I’m real biased about my time with the Rams and the work that Torry and I put in, so it’s going to be hard to match but hopefully they do it.”
The new Rams wideout pairing came to L.A. together when head coach Sean McVay was hired. Woods has caught 322 of his 525 career receptions with the Rams. Kupp went from a combined 102 catches his first two seasons in McVay’s system to 94 and 92 receptions the last two years.
Kupp came in as the No. 89 ranked player by the NFL Network’s “Top 100” player list of 2020.
‘The Rev’s’ Bold Prediction
It’s no secret Bruce is confident in his former team’s outlook for 2021: Going on the Jim Rome Show on June 22 and calling his team the favorite to win the division to predicting “there’s going to be a whole lot of winning going on in this stadium” on his visit to SoFi Stadium on June 10.
“It’s immaculate. It’s clean. It’s fresh. There’s going to be a whole lot of winning going on in this stadium.”
@IsaacBruce80 checkin’ in from @SoFiStadium for the first time! 🙌
Back to his recent NFL Network interview, Bruce is another who shares enthusiasm toward the Rams having Matthew Stafford on board as QB, saying “I second everything coach McVay has said about Stafford. When you see his passing yards, 45,000 career passing yards, he’s definitely a guy who is going to get some hall of fame votes when he’s done playing. But when you put him in this offense and everything McVay likes to do offensively, just adding him to that mix and the way McVay calls the offense, I’m excited and expecting a deep run into the playoffs.”
Bruce then ended his interview with this bold declaration: “I can’t wait to be in L.A. for the NFC championship.”