Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua’s trip to rehab was his major offseason storyline and he discussed that decision during a press conference from the team’s OTAs on Thursday.
If the need for Nacua to seek help had not developed, the main story of his offseason almost certainly would have been his contract. Nacua is in the final year of his rookie deal and his play over the last three seasons put him in line for a deal that would be at the top of the list for players at the position.
On Wednesday, Nacua was asked if he’s comfortable playing out the year without agreeing to a contract extension with the NFC West club.
“I haven’t really thought about it,” Nacua said. “I enjoy playing football. It’s the biggest dream come true. To be able to be out here and play for this organization specifically has been awesome. I couldn’t imagine myself anywhere else. It’s been fun to be out here and be around these guys. Like I said, I’ll let all those things handle themselves.”
Seahawks wideout Jaxon Smith-Njigba currently sits atop the receiver pay scale after signing an extension this offseason. Whether Nacua joins him with a new deal in the near future will likely hinge on how much the off-field issues of this offseason have impacted the Rams’ view of Nacua’s future with the team.
Rams Clips
Matthew Stafford is 38 years old, and he knows there’s a reason the Rams drafted the 23-year-old quarterback Ty Simpson in the first round.
Stafford declined to go into detail when asked by reporters what coach Sean McVay said to him about the Rams’ decision to draft Simpson, but he said he was grateful that McVay wanted to talk to him about it, and he understands why the Rams felt like they needed a younger quarterback to build for the future.
“I’m not going to get into what our conversation was I appreciate him talking with me about those things. We have constant dialogue and a great relationship, so I appreciate that,” Stafford said of his discussions with McVay. “I understand where the team’s coming from. Listen, I’m not 25 years old and I get that. We’re doing everything we can to be as good a football team as we can for now, for the future, for all of it.”
Stafford said he wants to help Simpson prepare, but that it’s not unlike the way he’s helping the whole team get ready for the 2026 season.
“My job first and foremost is to get myself and our team ready to play as best as I possibly can. He’s a part of that team. We’re in a unique position in that we play the same position, I have a ton of experience and he’s just now starting his journey as an NFL player,” Stafford said. “He’s a guy that asks questions. I’ve been trying to answer those as honestly and as thoroughly as I possibly can.”
Stafford said the Rams’ whole roster is working to improve, and he’s supporting everyone.
“I’m happy to add good players to our team,” Stafford said. “He’s one of them. But my job is go out there and get myself and our team as ready to play as I possibly can.”
The 49ers ended up with not one but two international games in 2026 — one in Australia and one in Mexico. Even though the trip to Melbourne will be much longer than the trip to Mexico City, the Mexico trip will likely keep them away from home even longer than the season-opener down under.
“We haven’t finalized it yet, but we’d love to stay here and go there,” Shanahan said of the travel plans for the Week 11 game against the Vikings in Mexico City. “It’s a shorter flight, but that’s not really the issue. The main thing with Mexico City is it’s 2,000 [feet] higher than Denver. And so, we like to get adjusted to that altitude. So, we’ll probably go to Colorado Springs again like we did last time to get ready for that altitude and then probably go to Mexico City the night before.”
The 49ers play their Week 10 game at Dallas. Shanahan was asked whether the team would go straight to Colorado from Texas.
“We haven’t decided that yet, but most likely,” Shanahan said. “We’ll probably end up, the Mexico City trip will probably be a longer one than the Australia one, just because of that.”
The two international trips impose a significant burden on the 49ers. And it potentially creates a competitive disadvantage. Those issues, however, have taken a back seat to the league’s efforts to globalize the game.
The NFL wants to secure the ability to play 16 international games per year, with the idea of having every team make one international trip per season. That would be the fairest way to handle it. If every team has to leave the country once, the disadvantage levels out.
For now, with a maximum of 10 international games, it would be far more fair for no team to be expected to travel to another country for a game more than once per year. In the ultra-difficult NFC West, having the 49ers make two separate trips to play in another country won’t make it an easier to successfully compete with the Seahawks and the Rams.
Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua met with the media for the first time since completing rehab this offseason.
“Some of the things I feel like I’ve learned is it’s OK to ask for support and to recognize that the platform that I have being a professional football player,” Nacua said, via Tyler Dragon of USA Today. “And trying to use that for the betterment of myself and for those around me, and the people that have supported me.”
Nacua expressed gratitude for support from the Rams and those in his circle.
“This offseason I’ve been really grateful for the support from the organization, especially my teammates, people reaching out at different times of the offseason just checking in,” Nacua said. “I’m just really grateful for the people around me and in this organization.”
Nacua is facing a civil suit from a woman who accuses him of biting her on the left shoulder after a group dinner in Los Angeles on Dec. 31. The woman, who is Jewish, has also accused Nacua of making an antisemitic statement during dinner.
The plaintiff, Madison Atiabi, is seeking damages for assault and battery, gender violence and negligence.
Nacua checked into a treatment center in Malibu this spring.
Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford is now under contract with the Rams through the 2027 season, and he says his hope is that he’s playing at least that long.
The 38-year-old Stafford told Pat McAfee that he would like to keep playing beyond this year.
“I’m happy to be in Los Angeles right now with the sun beating down on my face and another year under my belt coming up, and hopefully some more football after that. I love playing this game,” Stafford said.
Stafford said he and his family discuss whether he should retire, and so far everyone is on board with him keeping it going.
“My body feels pretty good, luckily, which is great,” Stafford said. “Those conversations are family things. I talked about those with my wife and my kids. They love watching me play, they want me to keep doing it as long as I feel good and I feel excited about it, which I am,” Stafford said.
The Rams are already planning for a future without Stafford by drafting quarterback Ty Simpson in the first round. Stafford said he’ll attempt to manage the end of his career in a way that works for the Rams.
“It is something delicate,” Stafford said. “I’ve got to navigate the end of it, and I’m not sure when that is. I want to be fair to our team, but I also want to be fair to myself and take this thing year to year. But at the same time, I love playing, and I’m excited about this season.”
Stafford is heading into his sixth season with the Rams after playing 12 with the Lions. Whether he’ll retire as a Ram or perhaps go elsewhere when it’s time for Simpson to take the reins of the Rams’ offense remains to be seen, but he’s hoping that his 18th NFL season will not be his last.
Saints head coach Kellen Moore said in March that the team will be holding training camp in Louisiana this summer, but they will head to California for some extended work as well.
The Saints are scheduled to be in Los Angeles for their second preseason game and Moore said at a Thursday press conference that the team is slated to hold joint practices with the Rams before that contest. Moore also said that the team plans to work out with the Cowboys, who train in Oxnard, while they are out west.
The final game of the preseason will take place against the Cowboys in Dallas.
Moore said that the team will also be hosting joint practices with the Jaguars. The two teams will face each other in the Superdome on August 15.
Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford says he’s happy to have rookie quarterback Ty Simpson as a new teammate.
Contrary to any talk that he might be upset with the team using its first-round draft pick on a quarterback, Stafford told Pat McAfee that he’s happy to work with Simpson.
“I’m in there with him in the meeting room, on the practice field, trying to share as much knowledge as I can. I was a big fan of Ty when he was playing at Alabama,” Stafford said.
Stafford said that although he didn’t enjoy watching Simpson’s Alabama team beat Stafford’s alma mater, Georgia, last season, he otherwise liked what he saw of Simpson in college.
“I sent him a text after he got drafted and said, ‘Really enjoyed watching you play, just that you were in the wrong jersey,’” Stafford said. “I did enjoy watching him play. He’s a talented kid.”
Stafford said that when he was a first-round rookie, older players helped him out, and he plans to do the same.
“I’m going to do everything I can to get this team ready to play, to win, but at the same time share some of the knowledge that I’ve gained throughout my career, because I wouldn’t be in the seat I am now, after a really good football season, if I didn’t have people helping me out along the way, so I’m happy to do that,” Stafford said. “He’s been a sponge. He’s looking to get better.”
Stan Kroenke built SoFi Stadium without public money. He now wants some.
Actually, he wants a lot.
Via the New York Times, Kroenke seeks $400 million from Inglewood in a legal dispute over improvements made to the location of the facility property and the surrounding area.
Camp Kroenke cites a 2015 agreement with the city. Inglewood claims the agreement was nixed by a court decision that made agreements adopted by voter initiative invalid.
Beyond taking the position that the agreement was voided by the court decision, Inglewood quibbles with the amounts Kroenke is seeking.
There’s a separate dispute over Inglewood’s placement of billboards in the vicinity of SoFi Stadium. A hearing on that issue is set for Friday.
The managing director of Kroenke’s Hollywood Park said this in a statement: “If the city’s agreements can now be revisited or undone after years of economic growth and community benefit, it raises fundamental questions about the reliability of doing business in Inglewood — and California generally.”
If Kroenke hadn’t dumped so much of his own money into the project, the last part of the statement could be viewed as a suggestion that the Rams could leave the state, again. (It would be hilarious if they went back to St. Louis.)
Looking at it more broadly, this is yet another example of how land barons and captains of industry do business. They want what they want, and they’ll use everything in their power to get it.
Frankly, Inglewood knew or should have known this could happen, given that the relocation of the Rams from St. Louis sparked litigation that ultimately was settled by the Rams and the NFL for $790 million.
If nothing else, Kroenke may view the current fight as a way to get more than half of that money back.
When the first details of a new contract emerge, they usually lack key details and context. That’s because key details and context often don’t look as good as the broad-brush, big-picture numbers that are spoon-fed to those who then post the numbers on social media without asking questions.
In time, the details and context inevitably come to light.
With the Rams and Matthew Stafford, the more important detail is this: Stafford gets a $5 million raise in 2026, and the Rams get control of his rights in 2027 through a currently non-guaranteed compensation package.
Albert Breer of SI posted the details on Tuesday. Stafford’s base pay for 2026 has increased from $40 million to $45 million, with another $5 million in playoff incentives available. The extra $5 million comes in the form of a guaranteed roster bonus due in 2028.
Stafford is also due to make $45 million in 2027. But none of the money is currently guaranteed. As of March 2027, the payment becomes fully guaranteed. (The 2027 season also includes another $5 million in playoff incentives.)
Tom Pelissero of NFL Network has added other details regarding the incentive package ($2.5 million for winning the NFC Championship and $2.5 million for winning the Super Bowl) and a phony $100 million compensation package for 2028, which becomes guaranteed on the 10th day of the league year.
Ultimately, Stafford accepted the $5 million raise in base pay in lieu of embracing the possibility of becoming a free agent in 2027. The Rams, in exchange for the extra $5 million, have secured the ability to decide after 2026 whether to keep Stafford — with Stafford not having the ability to leave for another team.
If Stafford would decide to move on after 2026, the Rams surely wouldn’t force him to stay. But the Rams would be in position to receive trade compensation for Stafford, if he decides it’s time to play elsewhere.
The deeper message is that Stafford likely has no desire to play for another team. He had the chance last year to leave for the Raiders or the Giants, and he took less to stay with the Rams.
So if he’s never going to play for another team, why not accept an extra $5 million (with a Super Bowl win unlocking $5 million more) in exchange for a one-way commitment through 2027? He has the freedom to retire after the upcoming season, and at this point it appears that his year-to-year options are to play for the Rams or not play at all.
When the Rams used their first-round draft pick on quarterback Ty Simpson, questions were immediately raised: Shouldn’t they have spent that pick on a player who could help Matthew Stafford win another Super Bowl? Did Rams coach Sean McVay even want Simpson?
Simpson said he was aware of the reaction, but it didn’t matter to him.
“I really didn’t care, to be honest with you,” Simpson told SI.com. “Everybody can have an opinion, but it’s my job to take care of my business. So, the Rams took me with the 13th overall pick, so now it’s my job to be the best player I can be, the best Ty I can be, and go out there and prove them right. I don’t really listen to all that. My job is to make sure to do whatever my team needs me to do to win and that’s what I’m going to do.”
Simpson says Stafford has been a good teammate in the early part of the offseason program.
“It’s great. Just sitting there in the room with Matthew, it’s super, super fun. It’s awesome. He’s just an A-plus guy, A-plus player,” Simpson said. “I think it’s really, really cool to, one, be in the room with Matthew, who has done it at a high level for so long.”
With Stafford now signed through 2027, it could be years before Simpson takes over from Stafford as the starter. But Simpson is beginning the work now to be ready whenever his name is called.
