LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Rams will likely place wide receiver Puka Nacua on injured reserve with an MCL and PCL sprain in his right leg and turf toe, head coach Sean McVay said on Monday.
McVay didn’t give a specific timeline for how many weeks Nacua is expected to miss, but said the team believes it will be at least a month.
Nacua sustained the injuries on the Rams’ final offensive snap of Sunday’s victory over the Washington Commanders. The injuries happened on third down with the Rams attempting to end the game with a conversion. Nacua rushed for 5 yards but took a hard hit on the play and briefly stayed on the ground before walking off the field.
Nacua had 14 catches for 150 yards and a touchdown in the victory. He was targeted 19 times by quarterback Matthew Stafford. The Rams were already without wide receiver Davante Adams, who injured his hamstring in Week 6.
McVay said Monday he’s “kicking himself” in retrospect about exposing Nacua to a big hit with a run play late in Sunday’s game with a 20-13 lead.
“I’d be lying to you if I said I haven’t questioned the decision-making on that last play over and over in my head of what could have been another option that you felt like could have gotten a conversion and maybe ended the game that would’ve led to him not taking a violent hit to his right knee,” McVay said. “And so it’s stuff that I feel tremendous responsibility for and we’ve got to be able to figure out how to protect these guys while also putting them in positions that help our team and allow them to be able to shine.”
If Nacua does go on injured reserve as expected, Nacua would miss games against the Arizona Cardinals, Green Bay Packers, Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers.
While McVay had previously said he didn’t expect the Rams to be active before Tuesday’s trade deadline, he was asked Monday whether Nacua’s injury affected those plans.
“Yeah, I think you look at all avenues,” McVay said. “I think you’ve got to look at all avenues to try to be able to solve some of the issues or situations or scenarios that have come up. And so a lot of new things that occur on a daily basis, and so I would never rule it out.”
Nacua’s 25 receptions over the last two games are the second most by a Rams player in the Super Bowl era, according to ESPN Research. In the two-game span, the next-closest Rams players in terms of receptions are Tutu Atwell, Colby Parkinson and Kyren Williams with four each.
Nacua missed Weeks 2 and 3 with a hip injury. In seven games this season, he has 70 catches for 715 yards and four touchdowns.
His 70 receptions are the most through a player’s first seven games of a season in NFL history, according to ESPN Research. Since Week 4, he ranks first in the NFL in receptions (65) and receiving yards.
The Rams are 5-4 but have the toughest remaining strength of schedule in the NFL, according to ESPN Analytics.
