Puka Nacua Fantasy Overview

2025 Role & Results

Puka's Ascent Continues

Nacua finished with career highs in catches (129), yards (1,715), and TDs (10) in 16 games last year.

He posted 10 top-6 PPR fantasy finishes, with only one game worse than WR22. That came with a reduced role in Week 6 due to an ankle injury.

He Stayed Busy ... For the Most Part

Nacua finished with the fourth-highest target share among WRs (28.8%).

He continued to work short and intermediate areas, posting a 9.2-yard average depth of target while lining up in the slot on 33.7% of his routes and out wide on 62.7%.

Nacua remained a limited part of the red-zone offense. Only 15.5% of his targets came in the red zone and 17.5% arrived inside the 10-yard line, both well behind teammate Davante Adams (30.1% and 40.4%, respectively).

Elite Efficiency

Nacua continued to post excellent efficiency numbers.

Among 43 WRs with 80+ targets, he ranked:

• First in yards per route run (3.71)
• Second in catch rate (80.6%)
• Second in contested catch rate (71.1%)
• Sixth in yards after catch per reception (5.3)
• 19th in yards per catch (13.3)

Nacua also led WRs in Pro Football Focus receiving grade (96.2) and ESPN’s receiver score, which tracks separation, catching, and yards after the catch.

Set Up for Success

This is about as good a setup as it gets.

The Rams ranked first in passing yards, third in pass rate over expected, and fifth in pass attempts last year. They also finished second in situation-neutral pace and eighth in total plays.

Matthew Stafford provided a summer scare after a back injury forced missed time in training camp. But he managed the injury well and produced one of the best statistical seasons of his career: 4,707 yards, 46 TDs, and only 8 INTs.

Several Injury Scares Amount to Little

Nacua delivered for fantasy managers despite suffering several ailments.

He needed X-rays on his thumb after Week 4, sustained an ankle injury in Week 6, and left Week 9 with a rib injury. The ankle cost him his only missed game of 2025.

That came after Nacua missed five games in 2024 with a PCL sprain. He also played through rib and shoulder injuries during his breakout rookie season in 2023.

2026 Opportunity & Projection

Rams Run it Back

Nacua’s setup looks identical to 2025, with Matthew Stafford and Davante Adams returning.

Stafford returns after leading the league in passing yards and TDs, Adams remains a strong boundary complement, and the Rams’ lack of a clear No. 3 WR should help preserve another top-tier target count.

TE looks like a strength for this offense. The Rams sit at least four deep there with Colby Parkinson, Terrance Ferguson, Tyler Higbee, and rookie Round 2 rookie Max Klare. But nobody in that group looks equipped to cut into Nacua's workload.

L.A. also brought back all five starters along the O-line, cementing Nacua’s strong situation. The unit ranked fifth in ESPN’s pass-block win rate last season.

Paths To Ceiling

There’s no mystery here.

Nacua has finished WR1 in PPR points per game in two of the past three seasons and still owns the kind of high-volume role that keeps another elite finish squarely in play.

Our projections have him at a 30.5% target share, which would have ranked second among WRs last season.

Risk Factors

It starts with Stafford’s health. He played all 17 games last season, but his history includes multiple back injuries, including an aggravated disk from last July and a spinal cord injury that cost him seven games in 2022.

If Stafford misses time, the Rams would likely turn to Round 1 pick Ty Simpson, who’s still unpolished after starting only 15 college games. Stafford, though, has lost just one game to injury across the past three seasons.

Nacua’s own injury history matters, too. He missed six games over the past two seasons with a PCL sprain and an ankle sprain, and he missed eight more in college with hamstring, ankle, and foot injuries.

Barring any health issues late in training camp, however, we’d rather chase the upside than fret over Nacua’s durability.