Rams’ Nacua ready to go vs. 49ers, McVay says

Last updated: 2023/09/16 at 7:48 AM

BigP Published September 16, 2023

Sarah Barshop, ESPN Staff WriterSep 15, 2023, 03:14 PM ET
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THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. — Although wide receiver Puka Nacua was listed on the Los Angeles Rams‘ injury report as questionable with an oblique injury for Sunday’s game against the San Francisco 49ers, coach Sean McVay said the Rams expect the rookie receiver “to be ready to go.”

“We’re being smart with him,” McVay said. “You guys saw what a physical performance he had last week. … We just wanted to make sure that we’re doing everything we can to get him feeling as good as possible by Sunday.”

Nacua did not practice Thursday with an injury McVay said occurred during the game in Seattle.

Nacua, a fifth-round draft pick, had 10 catches for 119 yards in the Rams’ season opener against the Seattle Seahawks. He set a franchise record for receiving yards in a first career game, according to ESPN Stats & Information data, and had the most receiving yards for a player drafted in the fifth round or later (or undrafted) in his NFL debut since 2000.

The Rams are currently without star wide receiver Cooper Kupp, who is on injured reserve with a hamstring injury and is eligible to return in Week 5. When asked Friday whether he expected Kupp to be ready to play in Week 5 against the Philadelphia Eagles, McVay said, “We’re hopeful about that.”

“I want to be careful to say, but the reason that we put him on IR was so that, you know, that if it’s going to be those four weeks that he’s mandated to be able to miss, and then we can take him off of the IR and be available for that fifth week. That was the reason that we made that decision that we did last week,” McVay said. “Just because you don’t know what’s really going to come up. It doesn’t put a timetable on really rushing him back.

” … He’s so conscientious and I think he wanted to be out there so bad, that sometimes it’s like, all right, well, let’s protect you from you because you’re such an elite competitor. But I would say, I want to be careful [not] to put the cart before the horse, [as] they say, but I’m hopeful about that.”