The Los Angeles Rams won on Sunday because of Puka Nacua. Now they’re waiting to find out how long they might have to play without him.
Nacua hurt his right knee on the Rams’ final offensive snap of a 20-13 win over the Washington Commanders and will have an MRI on Monday, ESPN’s Adam Schefter and NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo reported. The early news on the Puka Nacua injury is encouraging: the team does not believe he tore his ACL. But the Rams won’t know the full picture until the imaging is done, and the timing could not be more delicate, with the NFL trade deadline arriving Tuesday at 4 p.m. ET.
The play that caused the scare
With 1:44 left in the fourth quarter and the Rams protecting a seven-point lead, Los Angeles faced third-and-11. Sean McVay called a handoff to Nacua on a jet sweep. He gained 5 yards before taking a hard hit to the right knee.
Nacua got up on his own and walked off the field normally after the play, which is part of why the team’s early read is cautious optimism. He had also left earlier in the game to be checked for a concussion and was cleared to return.
One source told Pro Football Talk the team is simply waiting on the images.
A one-man passing game
The injury came at the end of one of the best games of Nacua’s career, and the Rams needed every bit of it.
He caught 14 of 19 targets for 150 yards and scored the go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter. He added two carries for 20 more yards. According to Pro Football Talk, it was another 10-catch game that tied a Rams franchise record for the most such games.
The rest of the Rams’ pass catchers combined for just 78 receiving yards, according to Yahoo Sports, and no other player topped 20. That gap explains the worry in Los Angeles better than any quote could.
| Nacua vs. Commanders | Total |
|---|---|
| Targets | 19 |
| Catches | 14 |
| Receiving yards | 150 |
| Touchdowns | 1 |
| Rushing | 2 carries, 20 yards |
From fifth-round pick to the center of the offense
It’s easy to forget how quickly Nacua became this important. The Rams took him in the fifth round of the 2023 draft, and he set NFL rookie records that season with 105 catches and 1,486 receiving yards. Since then he has become an All-Pro and, as Sunday showed, the player the Rams’ passing game runs through.
That’s also why the Rams have been careful with him before. When he hurt the same knee in 2024, the team took a slow approach rather than rushing him back. Expect a similar mindset this time, especially with a bye week coming up.
Why the Puka Nacua injury hits the Rams so hard
Los Angeles is already thin at receiver. Davante Adams is out with a hamstring injury and may not be back until late in the regular season. The Rams also played Sunday without cornerback Trent McDuffie and tight end Terrance Ferguson.
Matthew Stafford is managing an elbow problem of his own and threw his ninth interception of the season in the third quarter, on a pass forced toward a tightly covered Nacua. When one receiver is that much of the offense, defenses know where the ball is going.
The good news from Sunday came on defense. Myles Garrett returned and had three sacks, including a 12-yard sack late in the fourth quarter that helped close out the win. The Rams then stopped Washington on the game’s final play.
The win was the Rams’ third straight and lifted them to 5-4 after a 2-4 start.
What a doctor saw on the video
Until the MRI results are in, any diagnosis is a guess. Dr. David Chao, a former NFL team physician who analyzes injuries from video, agreed that an ACL tear looks unlikely. His concern, he wrote on X, is a hyperextension or a possible aggravation of the PCL injury Nacua suffered in the same knee in 2024.
That earlier injury put Nacua on injured reserve and cost him five games. A PCL sprain is usually less serious than an ACL tear, but the timeline can vary widely, from a short absence to several weeks.
Chao was clear that the MRI will decide it. FieldPylon will update this story when the Rams or reliable reporters share the results.
The schedule could help
If there’s a silver lining, it’s the calendar. The Rams play at Arizona on Sunday in Week 10, then have their bye in Week 11. If Nacua’s injury is minor and the Rams hold him out against Arizona, he would get roughly three weeks of rest before the team’s next game after the bye.
What it means at the trade deadline
The timing matters for more than just one game. Yahoo Sports argued that the MRI result could push the Rams to be more aggressive before Tuesday’s deadline, and that even a clean scan shouldn’t hide how little the passing game got from anyone else on Sunday.
Los Angeles already made a major move this year, landing Trent McDuffie in an offseason trade with Kansas City. A receiver would be the obvious target now. Our NFL trade deadline guide has every deal so far and the names still in play.
Fantasy impact
For fantasy managers, there’s no move to make until the MRI is back. If Nacua is ruled out for Week 10, there’s no obvious Rams receiver to pick up, given how little the rest of the group produced Sunday. Managers who need a replacement are better off looking at the options in our Week 10 waiver wire pickups.
What’s next after the Puka Nacua injury
The MRI is set for Monday after the team returns to Southern California. Expect McVay’s Monday press conference, or an insider report around the same time, to set the tone.
If the news is good, Nacua could be listed as day-to-day ahead of the Arizona game. If it’s not, the Rams will have to decide by Tuesday afternoon whether they’re buying help for a playoff push without their best player.
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