Puka Nacua in rehab: How it could impact his future with Rams
Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua warms up before a playoff game against the Carolina Panthers in January.
(Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times)
Last week, a woman filed a civil suit against Nacua, alleging that on New Year’s Eve he made an anti-Semitic statement at a group dinner and then bit her shoulder. Nacua’s attorney told the Times before the lawsuit was filed that Nacua “denies these allegations in the strongest possible terms” and that Nacua would “pursue all available legal remedies in response to these false and damaging statements.”
During a live broadcast in December, Nacua criticized NFL officials and made a gesture considered anti-Semitic. Nacua apologized and the Rams and NFL released statements condemning anti-Semitism and discrimination. But after the Rams’ loss to the Seattle Seahawks, Nacua criticized those responsible in a social media post from the locker room. The NFL fined him $25,000.
“The play on the field is unbelievable, and then with what the game has dictated and determined, there is a responsibility in terms of representing all things that is not limited to that,” McVay said Monday when asked about Nacua. “He knows that, those are expectations and we hope that… it will be an opportunity for him to learn and grow, and we hope that he will be an Aries for a very long time.
“But he understands what the responsibility is, which is not limited to production on the field.”
Snead described Nacua as a “young man in the making” who “continues to evolve” as a person and player.
“You have to be on your Ps and Qs in both categories,” Snead said, “both variables, right, to win this type of contract.”
Tony Pastoors, the Rams’ chief operating officer, said “everything is weighed” in the process.
“It’s not just a matter of saying, ‘OK, turn it on on Sunday and make decisions from there,’” Pastoors said. “We need to consider every possible data point.”
