The Los Angeles Rams could be without wide receiver Puka Nacua in Week 7 when they take on the Jacksonville Jaguars in London. Nacua suffered a sprained ankle in Week 6. While Nacua played six snaps in the second half, the Rams wide receiver was clearly in a limited role. It’s possible that on an unfamiliar surface at Wembley Stadium and with the bye week looming, the Rams play it safe with Nacua and work to get him healthy. The Rams have a key stretch of games following the bye week in which they face the Seattle Seahawks, San Francisco 49ers, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers in back-to-back-to-back weeks. It will be crucial for Nacua to be healthy for that stretch of games.
With Nacua trending towards missing the game against the Jaguars, someone will be asked to step up in his place. Nacua’s absence may result in more 12 personnel, but the Rams will still need to find that pass catcher that can be relied on in big moments. This season, Nacua has 14 receptions on third down and has turned 12 of those into first downs. Those ‘clutch’ moments are what the Rams will miss with Nacua the most.
The big question here is who steps in for Nacua in that role. While the Rams have been without Nacua in the past, they were also without Cooper Kupp at the same time. Tutu Atwell could be an answer here, but he is also managing a hamstring injury. The Rams will likely replace Nacua with a committee approach. Here are the top options to replace Nacua in the offense.
Davante Adams
To be clear, Adams isn’t going to take Nacua’s role in the offense. Adams is solely an ‘X’ receiver and isn’t about to start taking on linebackers in the C-gap in the run game. However, the Rams will need Adams to start playing up to his ability if Nacua is going to miss time. This isn’t to say that Adams has been a disappointment. Compared to Robert Woods in 2021, Adams actually leads Woods in yards despite having three fewer receptions through six games.
At the same time, the Rams are missing some of the special plays that Adams is capable of making while he also experiences a case of the drops. Adams is fifth in the NFL in drop rate at 13.3 percent. Additionally, Adams is second in the NFL in end zone targets with 11 behind only George Pickens. He has turned those 11 targets into three touchdowns. The Rams are almost forcing the issue with Adams in the red zone rather than allowing it to come naturally. Maybe things start to click if Adams is the featured player in the offense rather than a secondary piece.
Jordan Whittington
This is the one that makes a lot of sense as for who will play in Nacua’s role in the offense if he misses time. Whittington is similarly built to Nacua and is able to do a lot of the same things. This isn’t to say that Whittington is going to dominate the target share or is as good as Nacua. However, in terms of a player who can play and succeed in that role in the offense, it’s most certainly Whittington.
Without Puka Nacua last season, Whittington had his highest snap share in the offense. The production wasn’t necessarily there as it was still early in his career. Still, in weeks four and five, Whittington had a combined 13 receptions on 18 targets for 151 yards. Whittington now has a full year in the offense under his belt and if Nacua is out, he essentially becomes the number two wide receiver in the offense. Without Nacua last week, Whittington played a season-high 92.5 percent of the offensive snaps and had three receptions for 23 yards. Whittington may not put up Nacua-like stats, but he will very likely play that role.
Tutu Atwell
In all likelihood, if Nacua can’t go, it will be Atwell and Whittington splitting time depending on the situation or being the other two wide receivers in 11 personnel packages. Without Nacua, Atwell is the most experienced wide receiver in the Rams offense. While he doesn’t provide the blocking upside, he knows the offense better than most. While he had a slow start to the season, Atwell was starting to get more looks against the Indianapolis Colts and San Francisco 49ers. In Week 5, he had a pair of receptions for 72 yards.
When the Rams have been without Nacua and Kupp, it has been Atwell that has stepped up. That was the case in 2022 without Kupp and it was the case last season when both were out at the beginning of the year. From Weeks 2-7 last year, Atwell led the Rams in target share at 32.2 percent. His 23 receptions for 332 yards led the team. Atwell will need to show that he is healthy, but in the past, he’s been the guy to step up when the situation has called for it.
Xavier Smith/Konata Mumpfield
Where this really begins to get interesting is if Atwell also can’t go on Sunday because of his hamstring injury. Atwell didn’t practice on Wednesday and was a late scratch last week. If Nacua and Atwell are both out, Smith and Mumpfield become the de facto third wide receivers in the offense. Mumpfield is a good route runner and had his first career reception last week. Smith played a season-high 24.5 percent of the snaps on offense and has shown growth as a wide receiver.
These are two players that the Rams likely don’t want to have to count on. With that said, if they have to, Mumpfield may be the one to watch. He had a strong offseason and has gotten consistent playing time in the offense. Mumpfield has played six or more snaps in every game this year and that could go up with Nacua out.
Davis Allen/Terrance Ferguson
Was it a coincidence that Terrance Ferguson got a jet sweep in the red zone with Nacua out? He also had a season-high 17 snaps for a 32.1 percent snap share on offense in Week 6. That could mean that Ferguson is naturally trending up in the offense. However, it could also mean that the Rams use Ferguson in that Nacua role in 12 personnel packages. Ferguson may still have a ways to go to pick up some of the nuances in the offense. Outside of Adams and Nacua, he may be the most talented pass catcher on the team. He’s someone that could rotate into that Nacua role if needed.
A player to watch here, however, is Davis Allen. Allen has taken a huge step forward in year three, and that’s especially the case as a blocker. He had the lead block on Kyren Williams’ touchdown last week, but has also shown upside as a receiver. That’s especially the case in the red zone. If the Rams move towards more 12 personnel with Nacua out, Ferguson and Allen are the players to watch.
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