Rams WR Puka Nacua leaves Lions in OT with knee injury

Puka Nacua missed Sunday’s overtime loss to the Detroit Lions with a knee injury.

The Los Angeles Rams star wide receiver appeared to be injured for the first time in the first half of a 26-20 loss to the Lions at Ford Field. He returned briefly but then left the game again to meet with medical trainers.

Nakua managed to enter the field on the bench, but left the game in a wheelchair.

After the break, Rams players announced that he would not return to the game.

Further details about Nacua’s injury were initially unclear. The Lions led 10-3 at halftime and extended their advantage to 17-3 before the Rams rallied to force overtime. However, Lions running back David Montgomery scored a one-yard touchdown on the first drive of overtime to seal Detroit’s six-point victory.

Nacua, 23, burst onto the scene as one of the biggest surprises of the 2023 season. A fifth-round draft pick out of BYU, Nacua blossomed into the Rams’ No. 1 pick and one of the most productive receivers in the NFL last season, finishing the season with 105 catches for 1,486 yards and six touchdowns, earning Pro Bowl honors in the process.

With Nacua alongside a healthy Cooper Kupp after two injury-plagued seasons, the Rams enter 2024 with one of the NFL’s most promising wide receiver duos. A long-term injury would be a major blow to a Rams offense looking to compete for its fourth playoff appearance in five seasons.