Hekker the reluctant hero as Rams take down Bears
But the four-time Pro Bowler took it all in his stride, determined to spread the goodwill through the ranks after the 24-10 success on Monday.
Hekker became the only NFL punter in the past 30 years to punt five times or more in a game and pin an opposing team to their 10-yard line or inside on every occasion.
The 30-year-old's reaction was casual.
"We got bounces," he said. "Sometimes you get them, sometimes you don't, and when they come in bunches like this it's fun.
"It was a great overall performance by our punt team and shows the work we put in during the week pays off."
McVay said: "He was phenomenal. Exactly what we expect. Don't ever take it for granted. I wasn't surprised but you're definitely appreciative of the effort he had tonight. It was a big-time deal."
Defensive tackle Aaron Donald told ESPN that Hekker was the Rams' star performer, saying: "He did an amazing job, he was on fire. I think he deserves the game ball. He had a hell of a game."
Reacting to that level of praise, Hekker said: "It's great to know that Aaron Donald knows my name sometimes, that guy's such a star in this league. I love AD, it's so much fun."
He added: "I'm really proud of the way we played complementary football tonight.
"You get good bounces and our guys produced on the outside. Our gunners did a great job of being available down there to down some footballs.
"Our protection was great. They brought in some big bodies and really wanted to rush some punts, got into some defensive safe looks and weren't going to give us much as far as they were trying to take away fakes, and in their plus territory they were trying to rush and get near me if they could.
"But our guys did a great job and were stout. It's just another day at the office. I'm glad we got some production and it just needs to be another building block in the progression of our special teams unit, because we need to get better if we want to help our team win games."
The Rams improved to 5-2 with their victory.
"You go into every game with the same mentality and same mindset, to be a positive influence on the game," Hekker said. "We were able to be a bit more of a prominent positive influence."