Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay announced on Monday that wide receiver Puka Nacua is a candidate to be placed on the injured reserve with a PCL sprain.
With Nacua heading to the IR, he will miss a minimum of four games and would effectively be out until at least Week 7, with the Rams having their bye in Week 6. Nacua left last night’s game with a knee injury after dealing with a similar issue in camp.
On Sunday Night Football, Tyler Johnson and Demarcus Robinson benefited from opportunities following Nacua’s injury, but which should fantasy football managers target with Nacua set to miss time?
Is Tyler Johnson or Demarcus Robinson the Better Waiver Wire Add in Week 2?
The two Rams receivers had somewhat similar usage numbers on Sunday night. They both finished with seven targets, with Johnson recording 79 yards on five receptions and Robinson having 42 yards on four receptions. The difference between the two was one long catch and run that Johnson had early in the fourth quarter.
In terms of their roles in the offense, Robinson was the WR3 to start the day. He lined up alongside Cooper Kupp and Nacua on the majority of snaps, seeing a total of 68 snaps out of the 74 the Rams’ offense was on the field for. Johnson saw just 49 snaps, and if you add his and Nacua’s snaps together, you get to 73, demonstrating he replaced Nacua in the lineup.
The tough part is projecting what this means going forward for the Rams. Nacua and Johnson combined for 48 routes, one more than Robinson ran. There is every chance that Johnson slots straight into the starting lineup alongside Kupp and Robinson.
We know that Kupp is going to be the main focus, seeing 21 targets in Week 1. Johnson then had the next best target-to-route ratio, seeing a target of 21.2% of routes. Meanwhile, Robinson saw a target on 14.9% of his routes.
If the same numbers hold next week, then we could expect to see Johnson with a target or two more than Robinson over the course of a full workload as a starter.
With Nacua heading to the IR, that does appear to be the case for at least the next four weeks. The concern is that while they both play these roles, will they share enough workload to where neither has significant value?
However, a line of four or five receptions for 70-ish yards would be in the region of a top-35 WR, making Johnson or Robinson a flex option in 12-team leagues.
Robinson has the better pedigree in the NFL of the two, having played in 131 games with 223 receptions for 2,550 yards and 20 touchdowns. He spent 2023 with the Rams but only played on 36% of the offensive snaps in his one game before earning a bigger role this offseason.
Johnson has been in the league just five years, playing in 35 games. He has just 55 receptions for 616 yards and three touchdowns.
From the film, Johnson looked the slightly sparkier of the two, and his style may be better suited to the “Nacua role.” That role should see more of the targets, but it is not a given he will fill it.
The upside play here for me is Johnson, but adding either gives you a route into this offense, and that has value. Both could be double-digit fantasy point contenders this week in a game against Arizona that figures to be a potential shootout.