The latest injury update on Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua confirms a longer time on injured reserve than initially expected.
According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Nacua could miss “between 5-7 weeks” due to the PCL injury he suffered in the season opener against the Detroit Lions.
Initially, it seemed like the team’s early Week 6 bye might actually be ideal for the situation. But per Schefter, Nacua is now likely to miss well beyond it:
“But now the Rams' thinking, according to sources, is that Nacua's status for the games against the Raiders and the following Thursday night at home against the Minnesota Vikings also could be in jeopardy”
Nacua is technically eligible to return after four weeks, making him a candidate to play in Week 7 against Las Vegas. But missing two weeks beyond the bye would mean returning for Week 9, a road game against the Seattle Seahawks.
Given that Nacua struggled with injuries in training camp, too, it isn’t shocking to see the Rams take a cautionary route.
As Schefter went on to point out, this is similar to what the Rams had to deal with a season ago with Cooper Kupp. While the superstar wideout missed the start of the season, Nacua began his eventually historic breakout.
Now, the Rams have to hope the opposite technically happens, with Kupp leading the way and healthy while Nacua recovers. It will fall to Demarcus Robinson and Tyler Johnson to pitch in as second and third options, if not training camp breakout Jordan Whittington, to assure the Rams are still in the hunt roughly seven games into the season when Nacua returns.
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