Rams Keep Puka Nacua Off Injured Reserve Despite Knee and Toe Injuries, McVay Says Out 'Extended Period'

The Los Angeles Rams will be without Puka Nacua for an extended period, and they are not putting him on injured reserve.

Coach Sean McVay confirmed both points Wednesday, Nov. 11. Nacua sprained his MCL and PCL and suffered turf toe on the final offensive play of the Rams' 20-13 win at Washington on Sunday.

"We won't place him on IR due to some semantics with the roster and things like that, but he'll be out for an extended period of time," McVay said.

That contradicts what McVay said Monday, when he told reporters the Rams expected to move Nacua to IR and that the injury would cost him at least a month.

Why the IR call matters

An IR placement would automatically sideline Nacua for four games. With the Rams on their bye in Week 11, that would push his earliest return to Week 15.

Keeping him on the 53-man roster leaves a door open. ESPN's Dan Graziano said people close to the situation were "very adamant" the injury is not season-ending and that the hope is a return around Week 14 or 15. Week 14 is a game at San Francisco.

McVay tied the decision to roster constraints but did not spell out the details. Sports Illustrated reported that a run of injuries has used up the team's available return-from-IR designations.

The play that did it

Nacua was hurt on a third-and-11 jet sweep. The Rams led 20-13 in the final minute and punted after the play.

He finished with 14 catches for 150 yards and a touchdown, on 19 targets from Matthew Stafford. McVay has taken the blame for putting him in that spot.

"I would be lying to you if I said I haven't questioned the decision-making on that last play over and over in my head," McVay said Monday.

Nacua has 70 catches for 715 yards and four touchdowns in seven games. ESPN Research says the 70 catches are the most in NFL history through a player's first seven games of a season.

The injuries keep stacking up. Nacua missed two games in September with a groin injury, missed time in camp with a core muscle injury, and strained his calf in practice late last month. He has missed eight career games, five of them in 2024, when he also sprained ligaments in his right knee.

McVay has talked to him about taking less contact. "But that's like telling a tiger not to be a tiger," he said.

Adams' return and the trade deadline

The Rams have no cushion. Davante Adams has been out since Week 6 with a ruptured hamstring. He and Nacua account for 100 of the 120 receptions by Rams wide receivers this season.

McVay put Adams' return around the Week 12 game against Green Bay on Nov. 25, the NFL's first Thanksgiving Eve game. The next game after that is a Thursday night matchup with Kansas City in Week 13. McVay has not said whether Adams plays against the Packers or the Chiefs.

That expected return is the main reason the Rams stood pat at Tuesday's trade deadline. They explored receiver options and passed.

"It kind of takes two (to trade), and you've got to be able to see what you're willing to give, what's out there," McVay said. "What we are optimistic about is Davante's return is sooner (rather) than later."

On Monday, McVay said he would "never rule out" a trade. The Rams have only four picks left in next year's draft to use as capital.

Skeptics on the national sports-talk circuit see real trouble. Fox Sports Radio's Danny Parkins called the Rams offense "on the verge of COLLAPSE" without Nacua. McVay's answer is a bet that Adams gets back soon and that the depth chart holds until then.

Who is left

The receiver group is Konata Mumpfield, Tutu Atwell, CJ Daniels and Xavier Smith. The Rams re-signed Smith on Tuesday after putting Jordan Whittington on IR with a back sprain.

The tight end room offers some help, but not at full strength. Terrance Ferguson, who has missed six games with ankle and hamstring injuries, is out a couple more weeks after pulling a hamstring in Friday's practice. Colby Parkinson is dealing with a rib injury.

On the other side of the ball, defensive player of the year Myles Garrett returned with three sacks Sunday. Kyren Williams and Blake Corum have also gotten the run game going in recent weeks.

Cornerback Trent McDuffie, who missed Week 9 with a back injury, did not practice Wednesday. McVay said "hopefully, this is the week" he returns.

What's next

Los Angeles has won three straight and sits at 5-4. It faces the Arizona Cardinals (3-6) on Sunday, Nov. 15, at 4:05 p.m. ET, then goes on its bye.

Arizona beat the Rams earlier this season and will start rookie Carson Beck at quarterback. The Rams will play it without Nacua, Adams or Whittington, and likely without Ferguson.

Whether Nacua can be back for the Week 14 trip to San Francisco is the open question. That is the window the Rams are protecting by keeping him off IR.