The Los Angeles Rams had to be feeling mighty good about themselves entering Week 9. Tied for the best record in the division, they had annihilated the Jacksonville Jaguars before going into the bye week. With the one-win New Orleans Saints next on their schedule, it was impossible to imagine a better time for Puka Nacua to make his return.
Off to the best start of his career, the wide receiver had been forced to miss some time. But, as he suited back up against the Saints, his return did not last long, as he suffered another injury.
What Happened to Puka Nacua?
The highest-ranked wide receiver on PFSN’s WR Impact, Nacua, was off to an electric start to the 2025 season. But an ankle injury caused him to miss the game against Jacksonville. Returning against the Saints, he was immediately electric.
As the Rams jumped out to a 27-10 lead, Nacua had played a major role in building their advantage, adding 95 yards and a touchdown, while catching seven of eight passes thrown his way.
Puka Nacua is headed to the locker room ⬇️
📺 FOX pic.twitter.com/uVlbzrr4ro
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) November 2, 2025
However, early in the third quarter, a hard hit to his chest caused the superstar wide receiver to be taken back to the locker room, as the broadcast soon confirmed that he was questionable to return.
Thankfully, the injury did not turn out to be anything too serious. As team writer Stu Jackson reported on X, “Sean McVay said Puka Nacua is good. Said Nacua ‘got his ribs,’ could’ve gone back in game but team erred on side of caution by not putting him back in.”
How Does Nacua’s Injury Impact Fantasy?
This has been one of the most concentrated offenses in the league, with Matthew Stafford funneling his targets, at times, exclusively through Davante Adams and Puka Nacua.
This chest injury increases the target share projection for Adams, elevating him into the WR1 conversation, given the level that Matthew Stafford is playing. But that’s it.
No secondary option has established itself as worthy of our interest, and while there are a few names that could produce, we don’t have much in the way of a signal as to who is best suited to fill that void.
Blake Corum has looked good this week, something that could get interesting should this team lean into a more balanced approach, but again, he’s rosterable, but not startable just yet. Missed time from Nacua would remove a player from our pool without really adding much equity.