The Los Angeles Rams’ injury problems took another hit on Thursday when Puka Nacua walked off practice with a calf issue, adding more stress to a roster that’s already been hammered.
Nacua is Matthew Stafford’s most trusted target and one of the league’s most dangerous offensive weapons, but he was forced out just three days before Los Angeles is set to face the Las Vegas Raiders. At the moment he got hurt, he led the Rams with 37 catches and ranked second on the team with 417 receiving yards.
The timing could hardly be worse for Sean McVay’s group. The Rams have already lost Davante Adams to injured reserve after Sunday’s embarrassing overtime defeat to the Arizona Cardinals, and the team is now staring at a receiver room that would feature Tutu Atwell, Konata Mumpfield and Jordan Whittington.
Los Angeles entered the season as the preseason favorite to win the Super Bowl, but the start has been rough. The Rams have four losses already, including an overtime setback to the Buffalo Bills on Monday Night Football and last week’s loss to Arizona.
Stafford, despite leading the league in passing yards, has had an uneven season of his own, throwing 11 touchdowns and six interceptions.
The injury list around him keeps growing. Along with Adams and Garrett, defensive tackle Poona Ford, defensive end Kobie Turner, tight end Terrance Ferguson and kicker Blake Grupe are all on injured reserve. On top of that, linebacker Nate Landman and cornerback Trent McDuffie are listed as questionable for Sunday.
There is at least some relief on the schedule ahead. The Rams are heading into four straight games against opponents without winning records.
In Other News...
Rams May Be Headed For A Tough Matthew Stafford Decision
Matthew Stafford has done everything the Rams could ask of him through the first six games of the 2026 season, piling up 1,794 passing yards and sitting atop the league in that category. Even so, Los Angeles has only managed two wins, and the gap between Staffords production and the teams record has become hard to ignore as injuries continue to stack up around him.
Ty Simpson is among the younger players the Rams are weighing for more snaps as they try to navigate the stretch ahead. For a team that still has Stafford performing at a high level, the question is no longer whether he can carry an offense, but how long Los Angeles can keep asking him to do it while also trying to build a clearer path through the rest of the season. [Read more 🡒]
Rams Suddenly Have An Offensive Question They May Not Avoid Much Longer
The Rams keep running into the same kind of roster math that makes the rest of the NFC West worth watching. Their offense already took a hit with Davante Adams gone, and with tight end Terrance Ferguson unlikely to be back soon, the group is still waiting for more stability than it currently has. That is why the possibility of adding another receiver has started to feel less like a luxury and more like a question the team may have to answer sooner rather than later.
Across the division, the landscape is hardly getting simpler. The 49ers were pushed hard by the Commanders before escaping with a 23-17 win, a reminder that even veteran teams can leave chances on the table, while Seattle is dealing with its own uncertainty around Sam Darnold and the state of the offense. If Zach Charbonnet is back in Week 7, the Seahawks can lean more on the ground game, but for the Rams the bigger issue is whether their own passing attack can hold up long enough without another move to shore it up. [Read more 🡒]
Rams Suddenly Face A Huge WR Decision After Latest Injury Blow
The Rams receiver room took another hit when Davante Adams was projected to miss six to 10 weeks with a hamstring injury, adding more pressure to an offense already dealing with multiple injuries to key players. With Matthew Stafford and the passing game now facing a thinner margin for error, the team has been pushed into a tougher roster conversation than it expected this early in the stretch run.
Alex Kay floated the idea of Los Angeles looking at free-agent Tyreek Hill as a way to soften the blow, but the timing may not be on the Rams side. Hills agent has said he is close to signing with another NFL team, and there has been no official report of a deal with Los Angeles, leaving the Rams to weigh whether they need to act quickly or look elsewhere for help. [Read more 🡒]