"A couple of x" is definitely correct; omitting "of" is just one more of countless examples of our "progressively" more illiterate society where what once would have been red lined in grade school is now sadly found in the NY Times, once our nation's leading newspaper, now it's leading laughingstock.
couple vs couple of
"A couple of x" is definitely correct; omitting "of" is just one more of countless examples of our "progressively" more illiterate society where what once would have been red lined in grade school is now sadly found in the NY Times, once our nation's leading newspaper, now it's leading laughingstock.