Puka

Nacua

The last we heard of Nacua, he was being checked into a “luxury treatment facility” in Malibu just days after he was alleged to have bitten a woman and made “unprovoked antisemitic remarks” to her. It’s been a tumultuous few months for the 24-year-old receiver who has taken the league by storm since joining the Rams as a fifth-round pick back in 2023. Now in the final year of his rookie contract, Nacua faces the possibility of having to play out the year without an extension, given his current situation. The fact that he’s back with the Rams for their offseason program is a sign that things are trending in the right direction for him. We’ll see where things go from here.

Nacua’s attorney, Levi McCathern, told The California Post that the 24-year-old has checked into a rehab facility in Malibu. Nacua has popped up in the news cycle most recently for a civil lawsuit in Los Angeles alleging he bit a woman on New Year’s Eve and made an “unprovoked antisemitic sentiment.” McCathern said, “the combination of stories ya’ll have run is certainly a contributing factor” to Nacua’s entry into the treatment center. Rams head coach Sean McVay said Monday he’s hopeful Nacua can grow from his offseason incidents and hopes he is a Ram for a “really long time.” Nacua is eligible for a contract extension soon, though contract negotiations may be slower than they were for his draft classmate, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, as he works through his treatment amid recent incidents.

It’s been a forgettable few months for Nacua, who has found himself embroiled in some controversy as of late, and was recently named in a civil lawsuit in Los Angeles for biting a woman on New Year’s Eve and making an “unprovoked antisemitic statement.” McVay said he and the team have had conversations with Nacua and that the star receiver “understands what the responsibility is, not exclusive to just the production on the field,” and said that he’s hopeful Nacua can grow from these recent incidents. The former fifth-round pick is entering the final year of his rookie deal and is due for a massive payday after totaling 313 receptions for 4,191 yards and 19 touchdowns over his first three years in the league. It seems likely that a deal between Nacua and the Rams will be reached before the start of next season, but the recent string of incidents could slow that process.

According to Garafolo, based on his conversations, he believes Nacua’s extension may need to wait until the summer. Nacua, whose 4,191 receiving yards are second only to Ja’Marr Chase since entering the league in 2023, is due a big payday that will likely top the record-setting extension Jaxon Smith-Njigba just signed with the Seahawks. Nacua is entering the final year of his rookie contract, so we would expect a deal to get done before the start of the new league year. Nacua posted career-highs across the board last season, going for 129-1,715-10 while soaking up a league-high 129 targets.

Financial investments at the wide receiver position could have been the Rams’ primary motivating factor, though having three high-end wide receivers can hardly be viewed as a negative, albeit a pricey one. Nacua is entering the final year of his rookie contract and will presumably sign “a significant second contract” soon. Adams is due $24 million this season and Brown is set to make $29 million. Florio believes today might have been the Rams’ self-imposed deadline for trading Adams away because his $6 million roster bonus just became fully guaranteed. It appears as though Adams will remain a Ram for 2026, but anything is possible. Stay tuned.

Answering a taunting flag on Riq Woolen by immediately toasting him for a touchdown in the third quarter, Nacua continued his reign of terror against the Seahawks. It was, amazingly, his fifth game of the season and playoffs to go over 160 yards. He’ll enter next year as a surefire WR1 and almost undoubtedly one of the first three receivers off the board after his league-leading 129 catches for 1715 yards and 10 touchdowns. There is some fragility here in the sense that Matthew Stafford is (even more) old and Nacua takes a lot of punishment on the field, but it’s hard to bet against the No. 1 wideout in a Sean McVay offense not delivering the goods.

Nacua’s 56 receiving yards tied with Colby Parkison for the team high in Sunday’s win over the Bears. His 10 targets led all Rams players, but Nacua was unable to get much of anything going through the air after going for 10-111-1 in last week’s win over the Panthers. The third-year receiver’s biggest play of the game came on a third-and-six in overtime when he converted a first down on a 16-yard gain to help move the Rams within field goal range. Kicker Harrison Mevis would nail a 42-yard field goal four plays later to send the Bears packing, as Nacua and the Rams now prep for an NFC West showdown with the Seahawks and a trip to the Super Bowl on the line. Nacua went for a whopping 12-225-2 the last time the Rams played the Seahawks, and will hope to replicate some of those numbers next week in the Conference Championship game.

And somehow it could have been better, because his one incomplete pass was a 30-yard downfield pass towards the end of the first half that it hit him right in the hands. Had Nacua caught it, he had a fairly good shot at a third score. The favorite for offensive player of the year continued his grind, helping Matthew Stafford out by breaking up a late would-be interception and using his efficiency to erase some of the trouble Stafford and Davante Adams had getting on the same page throughout the game. Nacua seems destined to continue churning out Overall WR1 Games against whoever the Rams draw in the Divisional Round.

Nacua’s 10 catches in Week 18 made him the NFL’s receptions leader for the year, narrowly edging out Trey McBride in this same game. He also pulled ahead of Jaxson Smith-Njigba in receptions, though JSN somewhat easily led the league in yards. Nacua closed out the regular season as fantasy football’s WR1 overall for the year. Only Justin Jefferson has more receiving yards in the first three years of a player’s career. By every measure, Nacua is off to one of the greatest starts to a career in NFL history. Nacua will have more competition for targets in the Wild Card Round when Davante Adams returns, but that has yet to stop him from putting up monster numbers this year. Nacua will be the WR1 for next week’s slate of games.

It’s hard to believe McVay would risk the health of key players — including Puka Nacua and Matthew Stafford — with the Rams all but locked into the No. 6 seed in the NFC after Monday night’s devastating loss to the Falcons. Perhaps the team’s starters will get a few drives before the backups come in against Arizona. That would include Jimmy Garappolo at quarterback and maybe Ronnie Rivers at running back. Keep it locked to Rotoworld for updates on which teams will rest their starters in the regular season’s final week.