Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua has spent much of training camp and the preseason managing a psoas injury, an uncommon ailment that sidelined him for several weeks as the team prepared for its Week 1 trip to Australia to face the San Francisco 49ers.
Despite the unusual nature of the issue and the scrutiny surrounding the Rams’ long-distance travel, the organization is proceeding with optimism that Nacua will be available when the regular season begins.
ESPN insider Jeremy Fowler offered a clear picture of the situation during an appearance on SportsCenter with Courtney Cronin on Sunday.
“They’re banged up, they’re bringing everybody to Australia. They’re hoping that everybody can play. Puka Nacua has a psoas injury. You don’t hear that very often.
“They held him out for a few weeks, taken it easy with him,” Fowler said. “He’s been back in stride this week. No setbacks. I’m hearing that the Rams expect him to play. So, you should have Matthew Stafford, Puka, Davante Adams in that vaunted passing game now.”
That assessment aligns with comments from head coach Sean McVay, who has publicly noted Nacua’s recent progress. The extra time spent training at home in Woodland Hills before the overseas flight may have given the receiver and other injured players a chance to recover without the added strain of immediate travel.
For a Rams offense that led the NFL in scoring, passing, and overall production in 2025, having Nacua healthy alongside Stafford and Adams would restore one of the league’s most dangerous units.
Nacua’s availability carries extra weight this year. Coming off a campaign in which he paced the NFL in receptions and yards per catch, he finished just behind Seattle’s Jaxon Smith-Njigba for Offensive Player of the Year.
A two-time Pro Bowler and 2025 First-Team All-Pro, the former fifth-round pick is still playing on his original four-year, $4.1 million rookie-scale contract.
He became eligible for an extension this offseason, the same window in which Smith-Njigba signed a $120 million deal that reset the market for young receivers.
The Rams enter the season as Super Bowl favorites after adding Myles Garrett and Trent McDuffie and welcoming back Aaron Donald. Yet the passing attack remains central to their identity.
If Nacua can stay on the field, the contract conversation that has been delayed by off-field matters will only grow louder. For now, the immediate focus is simpler: getting him and the rest of a banged-up roster to Australia ready to play.
