The Los Angeles Rams are in serious jeopardy of not having Puka Nacua on the field for “Monday Night Football” against the New York Giants according to head coach Sean McVay. That is not th end of the bad news either.
“Puka Nacua won’t practice for a second straight day with a groin injury and is questionable for Monday night vs. the Giants. It’s a different injury than the psoas from camp,” The Athletic’s Nate Atkins reported in a post on X on September 19, adding, “His direct backup, Jordan Whittington, is doubtful with a quad.
“Kam Kinchens is out with the hamstring.”
Nacua popped up on the injury report on Friday with the hip injury, with his absence from the practice field drawing attention before his status was even made official.
If there is an encouraging sign, it is that McVay downplayed the severity in light of the news.
“McVay said Nacua ‘felt good’ in Thursda’s practice, ‘but didn’t feel totally like himself with his ability to be able to kind of open up and really hit full speed,” TheRams.com’s Stu Jackson posted on X. “He had some soreness in (his groin), and so that’s why we’ve kind of been smart with him the last couple days.”
New Puka Nacua Injury Just Latest Concern for Rams
This is just the latest blow for the Rams. They are expecting Aaron Donald to play for the first time since the 2023 season. They will not have Myles Garrett, though. Garrett is on injured reserve with a knee injury.
That is certainly something the Rams have to hope is not necessary for Nacua.
There are concerns about his psoas injury and possible connections to his current issue. However, that is impossible to know without a proper evaluation.
Rams Get Some Good News on Injury Front
There was some encouraging news on the injury front for the Rams, according to Jackson in a separate update:
– ILB Omar Speights (hip) will be a full participant today
– S Kam Curl (ankle) and ILB Nate Landman (shoulder) will be limited
Of course, Nacua, Kinchens, and Whittington are or would still be blows if they are unable to play. The Rams are also trying to climb their way out of an 0-1 hole against a Giants team that is looking to move to 2-0 in front of a national audience.
The Rams entered the season as prohibitive Super Bowl favorites.
Per FanDuel as of September 19, Nacua and the Rams remain the favorites, but the 2-0 Buffalo Bills have closed the gap significantly.
Rams Announce Bad News on Puka Nacua Before Giants Game