Can playmaking WR Puka Nacua keep the Rams in the playoff race?

Rams coach Sean McVay was fortunate to find uniquely talented receiver Puka Nacua in the fifth round of the 2023 draft. Nacua took the league by storm, setting a rookie record for receptions and receiving yards in his first NFL season. 

And now, in Nacua's second season, the 7-6 Rams are leaning heavily on him to help them stay in the playoff race. They have a 34% chance right now, but would climb to 50% with a win over the San Francisco 49ers on Thursday night.

Now that he's been with the Rams for two years, McVay has had more time to design creative ways to get Nacua the ball in space. According to Next Gen Stats, the Rams are No. 9 in wide receiver screens since the start of 2023 and No. 4 in receiver runs. 

With Nacua being one of the best runners in the league, McVay is looking to get his dynamic playmaker out on the open field with a head of steam, ready to do damage at the second level of the defense.

Since returning from a knee injury in Week 8, Nacua has 50 receptions for 673 receiving yards and three touchdowns. Only Ja'Marr Chase (699) and Jerry Jeudy (678) have more receiving yards over that same period. 

"There's a lot of good receivers — and I've played with some good receivers — but some of the catches he makes are just insane," offensive lineman Steve Avila said of Nacua, shaking his head.

One of those catches was Nacua's toe-tapping grab along the sideline against the Bills.

Here's how Nacua described his route-running on that play.

"I told Cooper [Kupp] I was a little horny on my route," Nacua said, laughing. "I cut a little bit early. I felt the timing and I was ready to break open." 

Later in the interview, Nacua acknowledged he could have explained things differently.

"I was just ready to get the ball," Nacua said. "Maybe not the right word."

Against Buffalo, Nacua had 12 catches for 162 yards and a touchdown. On the season, he also has nine carries for 35 yards and a score, as McVay has looked to use his physical receiver as more of a runner this season. McVay said he's dealt with receiver rushes from a defensive perspective this season and understands the threat they pose. 

The Miami Dolphins effectively ran four reverses against the Rams in a 23-15 victory earlier this season, and the Detroit Lions were also productive running reverses in a season-opening win over Los Angeles.

"If there's not some integrity based on what that pursuit looks like, you open up some edges and opportunities to be able to get the flow of the defense going one way and come back the other," McVay told FOX Sports. "That is something that we've seen a little bit. 

"It started with Detroit in the very first game of the year. Usually if a team shows that they can have some success on some stuff, it's going to be replicated. This is the ultimate copycat league. There have been some opportunities where people have replicated that and had some success. We've made an emphasis on it."

The Rams have been a much more explosive offense since the versatile Nacua returned to the field. According to Next Gen Stats, Los Angeles has averaged almost a full yard more running the ball with Nacua on the field (4.5) than off the field (3.7) this season.

The Rams have averaged 26.2 points per game since Week 8 after averaging 19 points through the first six games of the year. 

Nacua has also been effective at creating explosive plays on in-breaking routes. He has the fifth-most receiving yards (263) and second-most yards after the catch (167) on in-breaking routes since returning from injury in Week 8, per Next Gen Stats. And since entering the league in 2023, Nacua has recorded the most yards after the catch on in-breaking routes (563). 

One of Nacua's offseason goals was to limit his drops. He finished with a league-high nine last season but has just one in 75 targets this year. 

"As a receiver, the number one job is to get open," Rams offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur said. "The number two job is when you're open, catch the football. 

"His hands and his ball skills are as good as anyone in this league. A lot of times, that's why you do have those drops because you're ready for the transition. Again, as he's learning and into year two now it's, ‘Hey, let's catch that thing first. My transition will still be good, but I have to make sure that I'm securing the first part.'"

Over the past two weeks, McVay has been effective in getting Nacua open on bubble screens. Nacua scored the winning touchdown on a seven-yard pass from Matthew Stafford against the New Orleans Saints two weeks ago.

The Rams replicated that play for the game winner against the Bills last week. It was a 19-yard reception beautifully blocked by Kupp and right tackle Rob Havenstein.

McVay is trying to find ways to get the ball into the hands of Nacua so he can unleash his physicality and ferocity. Plus, the more touches for Nacua, the better the chance that the Rams stay in the playoff picture.

Eric D. Williams has reported on the NFL for more than a decade, covering the Los Angeles Rams for Sports Illustrated, the Los Angeles Chargers for ESPN and the Seattle Seahawks for the Tacoma News Tribune. Follow him on Twitter at @eric_d_williams.

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