Los Angeles Rams Rookie Puka Nacua Takes Responsibility for Matthew Stafford Injury
With about five-and-a-half minutes to go in the third quarter, the Los Angeles Rams' plan against the Indianapolis Colts had a huge wrench thrown in it.
Quarterback Matthew Stafford was tackled on an incomplete pass, but the errant throw was the least of their worries. Stafford came up limping and battled a hip injury for the final 20 minutes of the game, and wide receiver Puka Nacua said after the game it was his fault the Rams' quarterback got hurt.
"Yes, I was," Nacua said. "First off, it was my fault that he got injured, so that's why it wasn't ideal. I was like, 'Oh my gosh. I'm going to be in trouble on film because I got Matthew hurt.'"
Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford (9) throws a pass against the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium Sunday. The Rams won 29-23 in overtime.
Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports
So, how exactly was it Nacua's fault that Stafford got hurt?
The Rams lined up in a one-running-back, one-tight-end formation. Nacua was lined up as a wide receiver to the right of the formation but was close enough to Tyler Higbee to be an extension of the offensive line, essentially.
Los Angeles dialed up a waggle play, as Atwell — who was in motion from left to right — was lined up where the fullback would be at the time of the snap. Stafford's intention was to fake the handoff to running back Kyren Williams, roll to his right and hit Atwell in the flat.
Colts defensive end Dayo Odeyingbo had other plans, as he was in the face of Stafford immediately after he faked the handoff.
Nacua's assignment was to engage with Odeyingbo and slow him down just enough to allow Stafford to throw to Atwell. He whiffed and Stafford paid the price.
Stafford thought Odeyingbo should've been flagged for a roughing the passer penalty.
"The defensive end jetted up the field and landed, what seemed to be full body weight on me, but was viewed otherwise," Stafford said. "It just started chirping right then, kind of shouting at me a little bit. But, I was good to go."
Stafford gutted out the final 31 minutes of playtime, limping after every play, using a heating pad to loosen the muscle and the training bike to work through the pain on the sidelines.
Nacua repaid Stafford in the end by hauling in a game-winning 22-yard touchdown in overtime to walk — or should we say limp — away with a 29-22 victory over Indianapolis.
"The guy, the legend, the leader of our offense, it's super cool. The confidence," Nacua said. "I know that he's going out there and playing, trying not to show it as much as he can, but the level of communication that he had throughout that whole overtime and even the period before in the fourth quarter, it makes playing football super fun."
