No Puka Nacua. No Davante Adams. No Terrance Ferguson. Not even Jordan Whittington after he was placed on injured reserve with a back injury on Tuesday.
The Rams (5-4) are as short-handed at the skill positions as you could imagine. But the NFL keeps rolling, and it’s on the team to figure out how to move forward itself as it prepares to face the Arizona Cardinals (3-6) on Sunday.
“I’ve heard (Hall of Fame coach) Bill Parcells say this before: ‘There’s a way to win all of them.’ And what that looks like doesn’t have to be the same week in and week,” head coach Sean McVay said. “Let’s think about ourselves first, all three phases, then you got to take into account who’s the opponent, what are those different matchups, how are you putting guys in positions to be successful, both personnel and tactical.”
The Rams have been working short-handed for most of the season. But losing Nacua to a sprained MCL and PCL, not to mention turf toe, was a sobering blow. In his two press conferences since Nacua’s injury, McVay has spoken in a monotone, rarely displaying his usual energy or inflections.
Nacua has been the engine of the Rams’ offense since his breakout rookie season in 2023. He has the second-most receiving yards of any NFL player since then, and is fourth in receptions despite playing in fewer games than any of the other top-five finishers.
The Rams will not place Nacua on injured reserve, not because of new developments but rather as a result of roster mechanics. But the team is left with four healthy receivers on the active roster.
The fourth is Xavier Smith, whom the team released earlier in the season. But after failing to make any additions at the trade deadline, the Rams signed Smith back off the San Francisco 49ers’ practice squad.
“It’s good to be able to get X-Man back, familiarity with our system,” McVay said. “You look at all things, like I kind of talk to you about [Monday], but it kind of takes two and you gotta be able to see what you’re willing to give, what’s out there, what does it look like in terms of envisioning things.”
The Rams are hoping that this is a temporary problem. McVay said Wednesday that there is reason to believe Adams will be able to return from his ruptured hamstring tendon in Week 13. McVay said the team won’t rush him back if there is a chance of causing further injury, but if there is no risk then they would consider bringing him back before he’s 100% healthy if he can help the team.
Which, given the state of the team’s receivers, might be the case. Second-year player Konata Mumpfield leads the group with 11 receptions for 162 yards, while Tutu Atwell is the only other one with a reception this year.
“I still throw to those guys every single day in practice and I have a ton of trust in what they can do,” quarterback Matthew Stafford said. “Trust themselves to go out there and make plays because they’re here for a reason.”
The Rams have been able to make in-season changes to their offense on the fly in the past. Last year, an injury to Nacua forced the team to experiment with 13-personnel – three tight ends and one receiver – to great success.
So on Wednesday, McVay wouldn’t rule out two-running back formations with Kyren Williams and Blake Corum on the field together if that is what it takes to move the ball successfully.
“I think you explore everything. It’s really our job to figure out how do you maximize the pieces and the players that you do have,” McVay said. “We’ve certainly been working hard to do that.”
“I gotta be able to manage the things that inevitably come up in the season,” Stafford added. “Whatever the iteration is that gives us the best opportunity to move the ball and score, it’s my job to master that.”
INJURY REPORT
Left guard Steve Avila (hamstring), cornerback Trent McDuffie (back), safety Kam Curl (toe) and tight end Terrance Ferguson (hamstring) did not practice on Wednesday.
McDuffie, who sat out last week’s victory over Washington, could return to the field this week.
“We’re optimistic that this week he will be able to go,” McVay said. “With the injury that he sustained, it’s weird because you got these muscles around it in the back which is some of the movement, especially at his position.”